Life would be much easier if we could reduce ethics to just one concept. Would it not be great if we could make decisions and implementation plans that always hit the target? Michel de Montaigne (1533-1592) took upon himself the task of reducing ethics to one concept, and he succeeded pretty well.
Montaigne believed that self-discipline constitutes the pillar that sustains ethics, success and personal effectiveness. In most cases, people know what they should be doing, but they fail to do it because they lack self-discipline.
Vices and crimes are often the result of poor self-discipline, theorized Montaigne. Even when people are aware of the risks of unethical behaviour, they will still go ahead with it because they want to avoid putting in the effort of doing things right.
Montaigne knew what he was talking about because, in his own life, he displayed a remarkable self-discipline. He devoted two decades to writing his essays with occasional interruptions due to health problems, travel, or discharging public duties.
Michel de Montaigne’s essay “On cruelty”
In his essay “On Cruelty,” Montaigne notes how easy it is, after ascending to a position of power, to lose one’s prudence and self-discipline, and carry out all sort of abuses, from which cruelty constitutes the most odious example.
Montaigne presents as an illustration the Roman Emperor Nero, (37-68 AD), who became a monster after ascending to the throne, carrying out countless tyrannical abuses, deploying pointless violence, and engaging in extreme cruelty.
Before Nero ascended to the imperial throne, his poor self-discipline was publicly known, but few people had predicted such a terrible outcome.
Montaigne recounts that the Stoic philosopher Seneca (4-65 AD) had contributed to Nero’s education, but failed to obtain the desired result. Seneca had failed to steer Nero in the right direction.
Seneca had feared that Nero would turn into a wild beast if left to his own devices, but failed to correct the issue. He wrote an essay titled “On Clemency,” addressed to Nero, arguing that a ruler would gain popularity if he showed clemency, but Nero simply ignored Seneca’s recommendations.
Montaigne also mentions the Roman emperor Tiberius (42 BC-37 AD) as another example of extreme cruelty. If Tiberius had possessed the virtues of a good ruler, including the virtue of self-discipline, he wouldn’t have fallen prey to paranoia. His cruelty was the direct result of his unhinged character.
Unfortunately, cruelty is still present in modern times. It is not a historical rarity to be solely attributed to ancient cultures.
During Montaigne’s lifetime, in sixteenth century France, thousands of people were killed due to their religious beliefs, and those killings took place with utmost cruelty.
Burning, drowning, public hanging, or dismemberment of individuals from religious minorities marked the times of Montaigne. Sadly, there was little he could do to oppose them. He wrote essays against violence and cruelty, but it takes decades of education to restore self-discipline to a society gone mad.
Montaigne’s essay “Cowardice is the mother of cruelty”
Cruelty is not the only unethical behaviour arising from lack of self-discipline. Montaigne wrote an essay titled “Cowardice is the mother of cruelty” to underline that cruelty arises from a weak character, not from a balanced personality.
Self-discipline is crucial to keeping a clear head in periods of crisis. It enables courage, integrity, resolve, and persistence when they are most needed. Adversity puts one’s self-discipline to the test. Unfortunately, it is a test that many individuals fail.
Cowardice is the default position of people who lack self-discipline. As soon as they are confronted with problems, they will relinquish morality, and engage in all sorts of unethical behaviour.
Montaigne employs an anecdote from ancient Syracuse to drive his point home. He refers to King Dionysus I (432-367 BC), who engaged in acts of violence, political repression and cruelty because he was afraid of assassination.
If Dionysus had possessed the necessary presence of mind and self-discipline, he would not have fallen prey to fear. His wanton cruelty was driven by his weak character: it was not a sign of strength.
Montaigne’s demonstration of self-discipline
I endorse Montaigne’s views that cowardice and cruelty are “the opposite of rationality and benevolence,” and that they are hard to eradicate. That’s why so important to acquire virtuous habits early in life, as recommended by Aristotle (384-322 BC) in his “Nicomachean Ethics.”
Montaigne correctly attributed cowardice, cruelty and other vices to a weak character. Poor self-discipline can turn people into “wild beasts driven by passion.” At that point, in becomes impossible to reason with them.
In his essays, Montaigne does not clearly delineate the best answer to those threats, although he did know what to do. His own life constitutes a compelling illustration of the best answer in those situations: stay as far away as possible from the source of trouble.
Montaigne knew of the vast danger inherent in dealing with people of weak character. Debating and complaining will fail in those cases. Words cannot restore a lack of self-discipline.
Since it is a waste of time to attempt the impossible, I think that Montaigne made the right choice by relinquishing his legal career and prominent position to retire to live in his farmhouse.
His self-discipline enabled him to change direction at the right time and make the best of his life. If he had not done so, I wonder if he would have survived for long amidst the religious tensions in sixteenth-century France.
If you are interested in putting rational ideas into practice in all kind of situations here and now, I recommend you my book “On becoming unbreakable.”