In all areas of human endeavour, the advantages of speed should not be underestimated. For builders, it makes a world of difference whether the structure of an edifice can be completed before the winter comes. For growers, it is crucial that all seeds have been planted before the warm season arrives.
Michel de Montaigne (1533-1592) applied the principle of speed to philosophy, problem solving, and writing. He wrote a large number of essays, focusing each one on a particular issue or question that he wanted to answer.
I consider each essay written by Montaigne as a lesson in problem solving. As a reader, I love how each essay is focusing from the start on the key issue, without wasting time.
It is true that Montaigne goes occasionally on a tangent, but I view his thought excursions as signs of the difficulty of doing a tight editing in the sixteenth century.
Let’s pass review to the problem-solving techniques used by Montaigne in his essays. He employed those techniques during the two decades that he devoted to writing. I would group his problem-solving techniques in the following categories:
Montaigne’s use of personal and historical anecdotes
[1] Take a general problem and make it specific by retelling a little story. The process of recounting a story from beginning to end will often bring forward the key to solving the problem.
For instance, in his essay “Of Cannibals,” Montaigne wants to establish the proper limits of tolerance. What kind of ideas, laws and behaviours are acceptable in a civilized society?
Instead of getting lost in abstractions, Montaigne recounts a little story about cannibals in Brazil, a story that he had read in a report from a French explorer in South America. Montaigne is using the story as “counterpoint to European civilization,” so that he can address immediately the question at hand.
About one half of Montaigne’s essays employ the technique of focusing on a specific story or historical anecdote. In his essay “Of Friendship,” he recounts bits and pieces of his solid friendship with Etienne de La Boetie (1530-1563). His goal is to answer the question: How to find great friends?
Montaigne does not recount random anecdotes. The purpose of each story is to illustrate an argument, and prompt the reader to think. As a problem-solving technique, Montaigne is usually recalling the key question after each anecdote.
For instance, in the essay “Of the Education of Children,” Montaigne is often reformulating the crucial question: How to educate our children in the best manner?
Montaigne also rewords the key question as: What’s the best education method provided by nature? How can we ensure that our children embrace the correct morality? If we want to solve problems quickly, it pays off to learn to formulate questions as precisely as Montaigne did.
Michel de Montaigne’s use of contrarian opinions
[2] The use of logical counterpoints, paradoxes and seeming contradictions can sharpen our mind, and enable us to solve problems faster.
Montaigne employs some form of literary or philosophical counterpoint in all his works. For instance, in his essay “Of the Vanity of Words,” he states that prudence in speech (humility, modesty, self-discipline) tends to denote a bright, wise mind.
In his statement, Montaigne is contradicting the prevailing idea, whereby we expect bright people to take a leading role in conversations. We expect wisdom to come to the top in debates or informal exchanges.
By associating prudence (silence, circumspection, modesty) to wisdom, Montaigne is prompting us to reassess our beliefs. I have adopted Montaigne’s habit of looking for counterpoints in every problem, and it has frequently helped me come faster to a solid conclusion.
How did Montaigne employ the counterpoint? His favourite method was to quote an ancient philosopher such as Marcus Aurelius (121-180 AD), Seneca (4 BC-65 AD), Cicero (106-43 BC) or Plato (427-347 BC), contradicting a prevailing opinion.
For instance, in his essay “Of Solitude,” Montaigne wants to establish whether it is proper and healthy to seek solitude from time to time.
The prevailing view on solitude is negative, but Montaigne made a solid counterpoint by quoting Seneca. He goes against the prevailing views by recommending us “to learn to be alone without feeling lonely.”
Michel de Montaigne’s use of imaginary debates
Montaigne made a profuse use of the counterpoint, but the positive results speak for themselves. He was able to write one essay after another for two decades, addressing a wide array of questions in all walks of life.
As a problem-solving technique, the counterpoint can prove extremely useful. It prompts us to consider viewpoints that we might have overlooked otherwise.
When Montaigne cannot find quotations from some antique philosopher, he writes down a fictional dialogue. His opponent in that dialogue is an invented person, not a real one. The only goal of those imaginary dialogues is to bring forth contrarian arguments.
For instance, his essay “Of the Custom of Wearing Clothes” depicts an imaginary debate between people who favour social or economic hierarchies with their rituals, and those who don’t like them.
A vigorous back-and-forth argumentation can help us arrive faster at a solution. Montaigne practised this literary technique beautifully, reflecting the workings of his philosophical mind. I regard it as a good opportunity to sharpen one’s ability to solve problems.
If you are interested in putting rational ideas into practice in all areas of life, I recommend you my book “Sequentiality: The amazing power of finding the right sequence of steps.”