What did Montaigne mean by 'essai' when he invented the essay form?
AA formal argument with thesis and defense.
BA tentative attempt at exploring a subject—thinking aloud, trying out ideas.
CA fixed literary form with strict rules.
DEssays are just personal narratives.
Essai means 'attempt' or 'trial.' Montaigne's essays are tentative explorations, not dogmatic declarations. He thinks through ideas on the page, follows thoughts where they lead, admits uncertainty. This tentativeness is essential to the form.
Question 2 Multiple Choice
How does Montaigne's 'conversational intimacy' affect how readers experience his essays?
AConversational intimacy is inappropriate for serious writing.
BBy addressing readers as peers and thinking aloud, Montaigne creates a sense of intimate conversation, inviting readers into his thinking process.
CFormal language is required in philosophy.
DIntimacy weakens argument.
Montaigne speaks to readers directly, in a conversational tone. He admits confusion, changes his mind, makes jokes. This creates an intimate relationship with readers—they're thinking alongside him, not receiving doctrine.
Question 3 True / False
TTrue
FFalse
Answer: True
Before Montaigne, rigorous writing followed formal rules. Montaigne showed that flexibility, digression, and conversational tone could be vehicles for serious thought. He made informality itself a virtue.
Question 4 True / False
TTrue
FFalse
Answer: False
This is false. Montaigne's essays grapple with serious philosophical questions—death, friendship, education, justice. The apparent looseness of organization masks careful thinking. The informality allows him to explore ideas in depth.
Question 5 Short Answer
How did Montaigne's model of 'thinking aloud' change what was possible in writing? What did he authorize?
Think about your answer, then reveal below.
Model answer:
Before Montaigne, formal prose had strict rules. It aimed for definitiveness and authority. Montaigne said: writing can be tentative. You can think aloud on the page. You can change your mind. You can digress. You can be uncertain. You can speak conversationally. This authorized a whole different relationship between writer and reader—not lecture but conversation, not certainty but exploration. He authorized the essay form as we know it—flexible, personal, digressive, intimate. Everything casual and personal about essay writing now traces back to Montaigne establishing that these qualities were valuable, not failures. He made it possible for writers to explore ideas through a personal, conversational lens rather than hiding behind formal authority.