Michel de Montaigne on the Benefits of Illness

Mathiasen discusses Michael de Montaigne's essay about his illness. Montaigne suffered from kidney stones, or renal colic, and nephrolithiasis. The French statesman and philosopher details his distress and its benefits in 2 wide-ranging essays. The earliest is "Of the resemblance of childr...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inThe American journal of medicine Vol. 124; no. 4; p. 379
Main Author Mathiasen, Helle, CandMag, PhD
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published New York, NY Elsevier Inc 01.04.2011
Elsevier
Elsevier Sequoia S.A
Subjects
Biological and medical sciences
Chronic Disease - psychology
Essays
France
General aspects
History, 16th Century
Humans
Illnesses
Internal Medicine
Kidney stones
Medical sciences
Montaigne, Michel de (1533-1592)
Philosophers
Philosophy, Medical - history
France
Medicine
Efficiency
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Summary:Mathiasen discusses Michael de Montaigne's essay about his illness. Montaigne suffered from kidney stones, or renal colic, and nephrolithiasis. The French statesman and philosopher details his distress and its benefits in 2 wide-ranging essays. The earliest is "Of the resemblance of children to fathers" (1579-1580). Here Montaigne writes that he has had a horror of this disease since childhood, as his father suffered and died from it at age 74. Now in his mid-forties, Montaigne describes his own recent symptoms. He also elaborates on doctors, drugs, and medicine. In his final essay, "Of Experience" (1587-1588), the author, reflecting on similar topics, adds the lesson he has gained from his sickness.
Bibliography:ObjectType-Article-1
SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1
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ISSN:0002-9343
1555-7162
DOI:10.1016/j.amjmed.2010.12.004