NEW FRENCH FICTION IN TRANSLATION : My French Life™ BOOK CLUB discussion

A Summer with Montaigne: On the Art of Living Well
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A Summer with Montaigne > A SUMMER WITH MONTAIGNE

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Jacqueline (aleajac) | 127 comments Mod
Présentation
I asked my husband to write an introduction for this book as he listened to the podcast, read it and recommended it to me then, for those who read in French, here it is '
Ce livre est issu d’une série de chroniques quotidiennes diffusées par France Inter durant l’été 2012. Il met en lumière tant la vie que l’œuvre de Michel de Montaigne, le plus important écrivain français du XVIème siècle. Magistrat, Montaigne se démet de sa charge pour se consacrer à sa bibliothèque. De ses lectures et de ses réflexions, il élabore progressivement un journal d’un homme à la recherche de la sagesse, Les Essais. S’il s’y décrit lui-même et s’il traite de nombreux sujets et de ses propres réflexions qui leur sont associées, il y montre l’impuissance de l’homme à trouver la vérité et la justice.
Antoine Compagnon, l’auteur de ces chroniques, est un écrivain et essayiste. Il a été notamment professeur de littérature française et comparée à l’Université Columbia. Depuis 2006, il est titulaire de la chaire de Littérature française moderne et contemporaine : histoire, critique, théorie au Collège de France. Il y a donné, entre autres, des cours sur Marcel Proust et son ouvre accessibles sur le site du Collège de France et dont il est un spécialiste. Il a écrit plusieurs ouvrages sur Montaigne et est membre de la Société des Amis de Montaigne.'


Jacqueline (aleajac) | 127 comments Mod
Keith Van Sickle
I enjoyed A Summer With Montaigne and appreciated the opportunity to learn a bit about Montaigne. I was struck by his open-mindedness and willingness to learn new things, adapting his point of view as he gained new information. We could use more of that today! I agreed with his concept that most people (unlike Montaigne) don’t like to have honest discussions where their ideas might be challenged, preferring the comfort of their established beliefs.
I was surprised at what a tough guy Montaigne was, facing down danger as mayor of Bordeaux and admiring the Spartans for their warrior spirit. One doesn’t usually think of a literary master that way.
Where I’ll part ways with Montaigne is on his view that culture and science weaken us. Given all of the scientific advances since his time, if Montaigne were alive today I like to think that he would change his opinion on this one.
I appreciate author Compagnon’s bite-sized excerpts of Montaigne himself, followed by an explanation of what he meant. I read the book in French and found Montaigne’s style and vocabulary difficult at times so Compagnon’s explanations helped me a lot.
Thank you Jacqueline for choosing this book!


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