Lessons in medical humanism: the case of Montaigne
Wasserstein, A.G.; de Montaigne, M.
Annals of Internal Medicine 146(11): 809-813
2007
ISSN/ISBN: 0003-4819 PMID: 17548412 Document Number: 613853
Michel de Montaigne, the great French humanist and inventor of the personal essay, suffered from frequent and severe renal colic. He wrote about his illness in his travel journal and in his last and greatest essay, "Of Experience." In his illness narratives, Montaigne integrated disease and suffering into his life and art. He humanized rather than conquered his disease. A mature humanism replaced his youthful Stoic philosophy of detachment and disengagement and provides a worthy model for our own medical humanism.