MONTAIGNE/AUSTEN ESSAY

Styles of Montaigne and Austen

          It’s amazing how two writers from different places, times, and genres can produce works that have certain similarities. David Foster Wallace wrote that “What goes on inside is just too fast and huge and all interconnected for words to do more than barely sketch the outlines of at most one tiny little part of it at any given instant.” The quote is somewhat supported by the writings of Michel de Montaigne. Montaigne sought to reflect on himself and his life in his Essays and his unconventional style shows that he had a lot of thought process going on. His Essays can be difficult to follow but there are strong themes embedded in them. Jane Austen, another writer from a totally different setting also became famous for her unique and fresh style. Austen’s novel “Pride and Prejudice” is easier to follow than Montaigne’s Essays because of her clear plot but nevertheless, the two have similarities. At initial evaluation, the two works couldn’t be more disparate but looking closer at both works, it’s evident that the authors had similarities in style that were illustrated through themes.

          I think that the styles of Montaigne and Austen are more different than similar. Like the previously mentioned quote, Montaigne used his Essays to touch on as many subjects as possible. He writes about liars, clothing, doctors, people, friendships, and tons of other unrelated topics. His wide range of topics caused his writings to seem somewhat jumbled and confusing. His Essays were personal, philosophical reflections and he wasn’t afraid to point out his own flaws, like his poor memory. In Jane Austen’s “Pride and Prejudice”, there is a more clear sense of direction. Her novel has structure and a plot with a setting, climax, and resolution. Austen’s clear style is reflected in her organization of chapters. Montaigne’s Essays on the other hand, don’t seem to have connections between chapters. The order seems random and there isn’t flow. In fact, within individual essays there are sentences that Montaigne added into paragraphs years later! Montaigne’s style is more nonchalant and his use of stream of consciousness is very obvious and often difficult to follow. Austen’s novel is filled with dialogue, whereas Montaigne’s essays don’t have much of it. He uses anecdotes and quotes thinkers like Plato and Aristotle though. Montaigne had much less clear organization than Austen and both got their thoughts across through different styles.

          Through the differences in style of the two authors, some similarities are detectable in the works of Austen and Montaigne. I think that both express the goal of trying to understand humans. Montaigne uses self-reflection to accomplish this and Austen uses characters to explore questions about human nature. Self-expression is visible in “Pride and Prejudice” as well. Austen was able to express her feelings about life and society through characters like Elizabeth, and Montaigne did the same thing but he expressed his feelings directly. Both authors also used their works to point out immorality. Montaigne criticizes tyrannical kings a few times in his essays and Austen uses Elizabeth’s hatred of Mr. Collins to show his immoral ways. Both authors’ styles reflect their own personal opinions.

          Jane Austen and Michel de Montaigne are very different writers. Montaigne wrote nonfiction essays with an abundance of stream of consciousness and complicated allusions. Austen wrote a concise novel with a distinct plot and dialogue. The two styles appear very different but both styles effectively portray themes and reflect the authors’ self-expressions. Montaigne allows the reader directly into his head through his Essays and Austen uses her own characters to show her meaning.