Montaigne by Desan Philippe; Rendall Steven; Neal Lisa

Author:Desan, Philippe; Rendall, Steven; Neal, Lisa [Desan, Philippe; Rendall, Steven; Neal, Lisa]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780691167879
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Published: 2016-01-15T07:00:00+00:00

The Essais “Castigated and Brought into Harmony with the Opinions of the Monkish Doctors”

Montaigne writes that when he first entered Rome on November 30, 1580, his book was “taken” by the customs authorities. Much has been written about the seizure of his book and the “censure” that followed. On these points, a few false ideas have to be rectified. It is true that since 1569 the inspection of books brought into Rome had been much stricter, and more power had been given to the Inquisition, which had agents to perform these inspections. Nonetheless, a significant number of forbidden books coming from Germany and Switzerland were available in Italian bookshops,215 and the pontifical authorities had great difficulty keeping prohibited books out of Rome. Once they had been seized, the books were usually destroyed at the customs office. The agents examined travelers’ baggage and compared the titles of the books they found in it with a list of prohibited books, to ensure that no forbidden book entered the city of seven hills. The Essais were obviously not on this list, and it is therefore improbable that it was seized when Montaigne entered Rome.

This episode, reported by his secretary, has to be analyzed in detail. Denying that there was as much freedom in Rome as in Venice, Montaigne noted that

his own boxes had been searched [visités] by the tax-officers on entering the city and turned over even to the smallest articles of apparel, while in the other towns of Italy the officers had been satisfied by the presentation of the boxes for search; that in addition they had seized all the books they found there with the view of inspecting them, over which task they spent so much time that anyone in different case might well have given up the books as lost. Again the regulations were so extraordinary that one of these books, the “Hours of our Lady,” having been printed at Paris and not in Rome, was looked at with suspicion, as were certain books against heretics by German doctors who, in argument, happened to make mention of the errors of their opponents. At this juncture he congratulated himself over his good fortune in that, having no premonition of the search which awaited him, and having passed through Germany where forbidden books abound, he had not brought away with him a single one these, notwithstanding the curious interest which often possessed him with regard to divers of them. Certain gentlemen from Germany informed him that had any such volume been found, he would have paid the penalty by losing all his books.216

Montaigne’s books were examined, but not seized (perhaps with the exception of Simler’s République des Suisses). In the worst-case scenario, the compromising books would simply have been seized (and destroyed).

Critics have emphasized that the Essais was seized, whereas the secretary himself tells us that the book was returned to its author. In fact, if his Essais was “returned” later, that was probably because Montaigne himself had submitted it for the approval of the religious authorities in Rome.

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