Essays aren’t easy. That is simply a fact of life, whether it is trying to find a topic for your essay, looking for evidence to support your thesis, or just trying to figure out what it is you want to say; it is hard. For Montaigne however it seems to come naturally. In his essay entitled, “Of Repentance” he talks about his relationship with the human condition and though the title would suggest that he feels sorry for his human condition the essay states the contrary. Montaigne tells the reader that he doesn’t have all the answers and that he has nothing to repent. His voice is more conversational than other essays of the time and he challenges the idea that an essay is always supposed to be formal. In fact, formal seems to be the exact opposite of what this essay is trying to achieve.
“On Repentance” tells the reader that essays don’t have all the answers and shouldn’t be looked to as pieces of writing that are only meant for those in academia. This essay challenges that idea and flips it on its head. Montaigne’s version of an essay encourages readers to explore their own ideas about a topic and respond to the essay rather than just go along with what they essay says. Essays are the beginning of a conversation rather than the end as most of the essays before this implied. It doesn’t just talk to the reader as essays before this have; this essay talks with the reader. It encourages conversation and uses “I” to give a more personal and informal feel to the writing style. This type of essay allows the reader to become involved in the material rather than forcing the knowledge onto the audience.
This idea is clear in both Dillard’s, “The Death of a Moth”, and Woolf’s, “Death of the Moth.” These essays both address the reader and are much more casual than the ‘typical’ academic essay. “The Death of a Moth” seems to center on the sacrifice it takes to be a writer while “Death of the Moth” concentrates on the relationship between life and death. With Dillard’s essay, her ending asks her readers if they would give up everything for their craft that is absolutely groundwork for another essay. She, more than Montaigne, is setting the flooring for a response essay and, in fact, she is encouraging a response.
The one line that really stood out for me in all of the reading was from Montaigne himself in “On Repentance” he writes: “I do not teach, I only relate.” He is not trying to inform but rather trying to let the reader take what they will from the reading and add onto it. This, to me, is the backbone of the modern essay. Essays are an expression of the author’s opinion or interpretation. For that reason, readers have the ability to take that author’s interpretation and disagree or agree with it. That alone allows for conversation between two pieces of nonfiction writing.
Montaigne’s take on the essay transformed essay writing into what it is today. This informal essay allows the author to become comfortable with the subject and the audience alike. It encourages conversation and doesn’t create a barrier between the author and their readers. The “I” that is seen in all three of these essays allows the reader to feel as if they are having a conversation with the author rather than being lectured to about the topic.
Even after all of this essays are still hard. But what these readings have taught me is: They don’t come easily every time but if all else fails just start with “I” and have a conversation with yourself, something will come up that’s worth writing about.
Timeless English 