''How to Live, or a life of Montaigne in one question and twenty attempts at an answer'' is a book by
Sarah Bakewell
Sarah Bakewell (born 1963) is a British author and professor. She currently lives in London. She received the Windham–Campbell Literature Prize in Non-Fiction.
Early life
Bakewell was born in the seaside town of Bournemouth, England, where h ...
Other Press
Other Press is an independent publisher of literary fiction and nonfiction, based in New York City. Founded in 1998 to publish academic and psychoanalytic titles, Other Press has since expanded to publish novels, short stories, nonfiction, poetr ...
on September 20, 2011. It is about the life of the 16th-century French nobleman, wine grower, philosopher, and essayist
Michel Eyquem de Montaigne
Michel Eyquem, Sieur de Montaigne ( ; ; 28 February 1533 – 13 September 1592), also known as the Lord of Montaigne, was one of the most significant philosophers of the French Renaissance. He is known for popularizing the essay as a liter ...
. In it, Bakewell "roughly maps out Montaigne's life against the questions he raises along the way," drawing the answers to these questions from his ''Essays''.
Contents
According to the book's webpage posted by
Other Press
Other Press is an independent publisher of literary fiction and nonfiction, based in New York City. Founded in 1998 to publish academic and psychoanalytic titles, Other Press has since expanded to publish novels, short stories, nonfiction, poetr ...
, ''How to Live'' concerns the following: "How to get along with people, how to deal with violence, how to adjust to losing someone you love—such questions arise in most people’s lives. They are all versions of a bigger question: How do you live? This question obsessed
Renaissance
The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history
The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (800 BC to AD ...
writers, none more than Michel Eyquem de Montaigne, considered by many to be the first truly modern individual. He wrote free-roaming explorations of his thoughts and experience, unlike anything written before. More than four hundred years later, Montaigne’s honesty and charm still draw people to him. Readers come to him in search of companionship, wisdom, and entertainment —and in search of themselves. Just as they will to this spirited and singular biography."
In addition to summarizing Montaigne's life and work, ''How to Live'' offers an ideological context, discussing the Stoics,
Epicureans
Epicureanism is a system of philosophy founded around 307 BC based upon the teachings of the ancient Greek philosopher Epicurus. Epicureanism was originally a challenge to Platonism. Later its main opponent became Stoicism.
Few writings by ...
, and
Sceptics
Skepticism, also spelled scepticism, is a questioning attitude or doubt toward knowledge claims that are seen as mere belief or dogma. For example, if a person is skeptical about claims made by their government about an ongoing war then the pe ...
, and their cultivation of prosoche (" mindfulness") through
ataraxia
''Ataraxia'' (Greek: ἀταραξία, from ("a-", negation) and ''tarachē'' "disturbance, trouble"; hence, "unperturbedness", generally translated as "imperturbability", " equanimity", or "tranquility") is a Greek term first used in Ancient ...
("equilibrium," or having control over your emotions). It also offers a historical context, explaining Montaigne's time of "soured ideals, when high Renaissance hopes, in Bakewell's words, 'dissolved into violence, cruelty and extremist theology.'"
Bakewell also provides her own commentary on Montaigne's life and work. For example, she asserts that the idea of writing about oneself was invented by Michel de Montaigne, and that this is one of the reasons his teachings are still relevant today, in particular to the many bloggers who are following his example, knowingly or not, by writing about themselves. She also suggests that the empathy readers have historically felt with him "derives partly from the free-style form of the prose as it follows the 'thousand paths' of one man's 'random' reasoning, and partly from the author's confessed inadequacy." Another example of her commentary is that she suggests his unconventional education of only being allowed to speak Latin “benefited him in exactly the areas where it also damaged him,” making him an independent thinker, but also making him detached.
Reception
''How to Live'' was awarded the 2010
National Book Critics Circle Award
The National Book Critics Circle Awards are a set of annual American literary awards by the National Book Critics Circle (NBCC) to promote "the finest books and reviews published in English".
It has been praised in its capacity as a literary self-help book. In his review of the book in
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
,
Adam Thorpe
Adam Thorpe (born 5 December 1956) is a British poet and novelist whose works also include short stories, translations, radio dramas and documentaries. He is a frequent contributor of reviews and articles to various newspapers, journals and mag ...
wrote that it "skillfully plucks a life-guide from the incessant flux of Montaigne's prose," whil Denis Haritou calls it "the most literate “self-help” book that you’ll ever find" in his introduction to Bakewell' article o ''Three Guys One Book'' Similarly, in his review of the book in ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'',
Nicholas Lezard Nicholas Andrew Selwyn LezardThe Cambridge University List of Members up to 31 December 1991, Cambridge University Press, p. 814 is an English journalist, author and literary critic.
Background and education
The Lezard family went from London to ...
writes that "Bakewell's title suggests something that might belong in the self-help section of a mainstream bookstore – and I did fear something de Bottonesque – but she approaches her subject very much in a spirit of which he would have approved."
Bakewell's writing voice and enthusiasm about Montaigne have also been praised. In his review of the book in ''
The Independent
''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publish ...
'',
Michael Bywater
Michael Bywater (born 11 May 1953) is an English non-fiction writer and broadcaster. He has worked for many London newspapers and periodicals and contributed to the design of computer games.
Biography
Bywater was educated at the independent Nottin ...
writes that "Sarah Bakewell embraces ontaigne'sexuberant digressiveness with delight and obvious profound affection. It's rare to come across a biographer who remains so deliciously fond of her subject. She turns her extensive research towards making the reader not just know Montaigne but love him.... Bakewell pulls off the great trick of writing Montaigne in both the context of his own time and of subsequent ages. If you know his work, ''How to Live'' will delight and illuminate. If you don't, the book stands splendidly alone, as a picture of a man worth knowing, and will certainly turn you to the ''Essays''. In short, Montaigne has here the biography he deserves, and would have enjoyed its unconventional structure.... Bakewell makes no attempt to efface herself, yet her vivid presence never obscures his. It's rather like having a conversation about a mutual friend, with one who knows him much better." Meanwhile, in his introduction to Bakewell's article o ''Three Guys One Book'' Denis Haritou writes that "Reading ''How to Live'' is like wandering in a sun-dappled forest of literature. There are so many paths to take, so many hints of other great writers to explore, that you could never track them all down from one reading. This book’s a keeper."
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
The Independent
''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publish ...