Steven, this was really and truly a joy to read for me as a decades-long fan of Montaigne.

As you say, Montaigne doesn’t offer a set philosophy or prescription. You learn from him by following his observations as he learns from life. Yet you summed up his life and learning to beautifully present a clear set of inspiring values—values that are compelling and admirable from the way you tell his story.

Further, when I first read Montaigne, I admired the way he thought and lived, but after reading your piece, I see him as heroic. His life was hard at times, but he persevered in his own way and “got” life, and in a subtle way, he triumphed—and earned the admiration of his contemporaries and humankind since.

In short, masterful insightful writing!

As a postscript, re the distinction between pragmatism and truth units you raised, your piece addressed it better than I could. Pragmatism implies we judge life as rational, utilitarian, detached scientists based on data. Montaigne suggests we look at life as whole—with a sympathetic understanding of our emotions, follies and weaknesses—to achieve an understanding of what real virtue and the good life is. From a truth units perspective, he paid attention to and learned from all his experience (like his “exposure to working people” and “distrust of official education”). His experience and reflections on it led him to become “the perfect peace broker between entrenched worldviews.”