In laying the literary groundwork for the development of the essay, French writer and thinker Michel de Montaigne (1533–1592) presented to the world a complete self-portrait — physical, emotional, and intellectual — that was also a mirror in which humanity as a whole found itself reflected. His early essays contained strong elements of stoicism and skepticism, while later efforts indicate a greater balance and an acceptance of nature, with an unflinching openness to new ideas and a willingness to examine impartially the foundations of accepted customs and values. Now readers can sample the vigor and penetration of Montaigne's thought in this selection of eight of his best essays: "Of Friendship," "Of Books," "Of Cruelty," "Of Repentance," "Of Three Commerces," "Of Solitude," "Of the Inequality Amongst Us," and "That It Is Folly to Measure Truth and Error by Our Own Capacity." This edition uses the classic Charles Cotton translation.