The Essays of Montaigne Ch. 47: The Uncertainty of Our

Michel de Montaigne

The Uncertainty of Our Judgment

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Summary

Montaigne opens on the liberty of second-guessing commanders: critics blame leaders at Moncontour and St Quentin for not pressing victory, yet the same facts invite opposite praise or blame once the war's end is known. War is not fencing: partial success leaves the enemy on foot and the game unfinished.

Should you pursue a beaten enemy or spare him? Pharax withholds Lacedaemon from charging escaped Argians; Clodomir dies forcing Gondemar to turn and fight. Sylla and Marius avoid desperate remnants; de Foix's pursuit at Ravenna costs him the glory he won, while d'Anguien remembers the lesson at Serisoles. Montaigne also weighs rich armour against Lycurgus's stripped spoils, Antiochus's display before Hannibal, and Vitellius insulting Otho into fury that no exhortation had stirred. Insults at sieges can strip mercy from defenders, yet they sometimes rouse cowed troops as Otho's did.

Should the general show himself or hide? Pyrrhus is saved yet nearly loses by wearing Megacles' armour; disguised captains cool their men's courage when ensigns vanish. Alexander and Lucullus love conspicuous harness; Agesilaus and Gilippus fight plainly. Pompey stands still at Pharsalia and, Plutarch says, dulls the charge; Caesar's side would praise planted firmness on another day. Clearchus marches fifty paces then rushes; some commanders receive a charge standing, others run full drive if the enemy waits.

Attack abroad or wait at home? Francis recalls his forces though invasion ruins the country you defend and pillage by your own side breeds sedition. Waiting lets the invader founder on supply, disease, and unknown roads, yet losing at home can disjoint the whole body through contagious fear. Scipio prospers in Africa while Hannibal fails at home; Athens in Sicily and Agathocles abroad cut both ways until fortune seems to govern outcomes. Timaeus closes the essay: our arguments share chance's temerity as much as our battles, so certainty after the fact is itself uncertain judgment. Every military maxim here has a counter-maxim armed with equal examples, which is why Montaigne refuses to crown any single rule as wisdom.

In this chapter: Terms Characters Key Quotes Modern Story

Why This Matters

Holding Opposite Verdicts

Smart people can build equally strong cases from the same facts once the outcome is known. Montaigne says it is not a victory that puts not an end to the war, yet others condemn generals for not chasing routed enemies.

When you judge a decision, list the argument that would sound wise if the result flipped.

Coming Up in Chapter 48

After uncertain judgment, Montaigne turns to the war horse. Roman destriers will charge at a drawn sword while Numidian riders leap between mounts in mid-battle Montaigne, no grammarian, opens on Roman relay horses called funales or dextrarios and the destriers that gave us post horses and extra hands along a march. He catalogs trained war mounts that charged at drawn swords, seized enemies with.

Lessons

What this chapter proves — the patterns beneath the scene

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In this chapter: The Draft You Keep Current · A Working Draft of Knowing.

The cards below name the patterns this chapter proves — carry them with you into the original text.

The Draft You Keep Current

The same act is praised in one mouth and condemned in another. Courts, fashions, and reputations swing. Montaigne watches judgment travel and then turns the lens inward: if the crowd cannot keep a verdict, neither can you. Loud confidence is not a proof of having seen clearly.

Key Insight

Revisit the convictions that still feel morally obvious. The ones that require no evidence are usually the ones still wearing last season's costume. Hold your own case lightly enough to reopen it.

“There is everywhere much liberty of speech.”

Full analysis

A Working Draft of Knowing

Praise and blame swing with fashion, interest, and mood. The same deed changes names overnight. Montaigne is not preaching that nothing is true. He is warning you not to rent your moral certainty from a crowd that will have a new costume by morning.

Key Insight

Slow the verdict. Public judgment is unstable; private conviction should stay porous enough to take new evidence. Relativism is a shrug. This is hygiene.

“There is everywhere much liberty of speech.”

Full analysis

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Original text

2,721 wordscomplete

Chapter 47

The Uncertainty of Our Judgment

OF THE UNCERTAINTY OF OUR JUDGMENT Well says this verse: [“There is everywhere much liberty of speech.”—Iliad, xx. 249.] For example: [“Hannibal conquered, but knew not how to make the best use of his victorious venture.”—Petrarch, Son., 83.] Such as would improve this argument, and condemn the oversight of our leaders in not pushing home the victory at Moncontour, or accuse the King of Spain of not knowing how to make the best use of the advantage he had against us at St. Quentin, may conclude these oversights to proceed from a soul already drunk with success, or from a…

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Critical Thinking Exercise

10 minutes

Map the Competing Truths

Think of a current disagreement in your life - maybe about money, parenting, work policies, or family decisions. Write down the strongest argument for each side, identifying the valid concerns and values driving each position. Don't try to prove who's right; instead, map out why reasonable people landed on opposite sides.

Consider:

•What underlying values or priorities is each side protecting?
•What evidence or experience is each side drawing from?
•Where might both sides have legitimate points worth addressing?

Journaling Prompt

Write about a time when you changed your mind about something important. What made you see the other perspective as valid? How did that shift change your approach to similar disagreements?

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Summary

In this chapter: Terms Characters Key Quotes Modern Story