MONTAIGNE - BACKGROUND

<BODY> <CENTER><FONT SIZE=5><B><FONT SIZE=6>MONTAIGNE</FONT><BR> THE SCEPTIC</B></FONT></CENTER><P> <FONT SIZE=4><B>Background</B></FONT><P> <FONT SIZE=4><B>MAN OF HIS TIMES - MAN OF ALL TIMES</B></FONT><P> <TABLE ALIGN=Left BORDER=0 CELLSPACING=2 CELLPADDING=1> <TR> <TD><IMG ALIGN=Left SRC="1002a.jpg" WIDTH="205" HEIGHT="180" ALT="CIVIL UNREST"></TD> </TR> </TABLE> Montaigne lived in troubled times. His lifetime saw five different kings on the throne. Religious conflict was rife. Montaigne was a public figure. Even after 1571, when he sold his magistracy and retired to his estate to dedicate himself to a life of reflection, he was drawn into affairs of state. He served two terms as mayor of Bordeaux. His friendship with Henri de Navarre meant he was called to court. His writing was interrupted by civil war, plague, and travel for pleasure, health and politics. He wrote in the sanctuary of a library in a tower, surrounded by a thousand books and classical quotes. But he learned as much from experience as he did from these.<P> Clear sighted and unprejudiced he offers us insight into his own times, but at the same time many of his ideas stand the test of time. He is a critic of intellectual authority pre-Enlightenment, cool observer of human sexuality pre-psychoanalysis, dispassionate observer of other cultures pre- anthropology. <BR clear=left><BR> <HR width=100%> <A HREF="http://www.creatorix.com.au"><IMG SRC="../creatorix.gif" WIDTH="85" HEIGHT="40" BORDER="0" ALT="Creatorix" align=right></A> </BODY>