Summary
Montaigne takes aim at one of humanity's most persistent blind spots: our tendency to mistake current customs for eternal truths. He opens with a devastating observation about fashion—how people will passionately defend whatever style is currently popular, only to mock that same style a few years later with equal conviction. This isn't just about clothes; it's about how we think. Montaigne argues that we're all susceptible to this mental trap, constantly changing our opinions based on whatever society currently accepts, then forgetting we ever thought differently. To prove his point, he catalogs dozens of ancient Roman customs—some identical to ours, others wildly different—showing how arbitrary most social rules really are. Romans fought with cloaks and swords just like Renaissance Europeans, but they also bathed naked together daily, ate lying down, and used sponges on sticks for toilet paper. The message is clear: if customs can vary this dramatically across time and place, maybe we shouldn't treat our current ways as the only possible ways. Montaigne isn't advocating for moral relativism—he's teaching us to think more clearly by recognizing when we're following the crowd versus when we're making reasoned choices. This chapter serves as a masterclass in intellectual independence, showing readers how to step back from social pressure and examine their beliefs with fresh eyes.
Coming Up in Chapter 50
Next, Montaigne introduces us to two ancient philosophers with completely opposite approaches to life's absurdities—one who laughed at human folly, another who wept over it. Their contrasting responses reveal something profound about how we choose to face an uncertain world.
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An excerpt from the original text.(~500 words)
OF ANCIENT CUSTOMS I should willingly pardon our people for admitting no other pattern or rule of perfection than their own peculiar manners and customs; for ‘tis a common vice, not of the vulgar only, but almost of all men, to walk in the beaten road their ancestors have trod before them. I am content, when they see Fabricius or Laelius, that they look upon their countenance and behaviour as barbarous, seeing they are neither clothed nor fashioned according to our mode. But I find fault with their singular indiscretion in suffering themselves to be so blinded and imposed upon by the authority of the present usage as every month to alter their opinion, if custom so require, and that they should so vary their judgment in their own particular concern. When they wore the busk of their doublets up as high as their breasts, they stiffly maintained that they were in their proper place; some years after it was slipped down betwixt their thighs, and then they could laugh at the former fashion as uneasy and intolerable. The fashion now in use makes them absolutely condemn the other two with so great resolution and so universal consent, that a man would think there was a certain kind of madness crept in amongst them, that infatuates their understandings to this strange degree. Now, seeing that our change of fashions is so prompt and sudden, that the inventions of all the tailors in the world cannot furnish out new whim-whams enow to feed our vanity withal, there will often be a necessity that the despised forms must again come in vogue, these immediately after fall into the same contempt; and that the same judgment must, in the space of fifteen or twenty years, take up half-a-dozen not only divers but contrary opinions, with an incredible lightness and inconstancy; there is not any of us so discreet, who suffers not himself to be gulled with this contradiction, and both in external and internal sight to be insensibly blinded. I wish to muster up here some old customs that I have in memory, some of them the same with ours, the others different, to the end that, bearing in mind this continual variation of human things, we may have our judgment more clearly and firmly settled. The thing in use amongst us of fighting with rapier and cloak was in practice amongst the Romans also: “Sinistras sagis involvunt, gladiosque distringunt,” [“They wrapt their cloaks upon the left arm, and drew their swords.”--De Bello Civili, i. 75.] says Caesar; and he observes a vicious custom of our nation, that continues yet amongst us, which is to stop passengers we meet upon the road, to compel them to give an account who they are, and to take it for an affront and just cause of quarrel if they refuse to do it. At the Baths, which the ancients made use of every day before they went to dinner, and as frequently as we wash our...
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Intelligence Amplifier™ Analysis
The Road of Invisible Conformity
The tendency to mistake current social customs for universal truths while forgetting we ever believed differently.
Why This Matters
Connect literature to life
This chapter teaches how to recognize when you're following trends versus making reasoned choices by observing the pattern of passionate certainty that shifts with social pressure.
Practice This Today
This week, notice when you defend something you criticized last year, or ask yourself what opinion you held five years ago that you've completely forgotten about.
Now let's explore the literary elements.
Terms to Know
Fabricius and Laelius
Famous ancient Roman leaders known for their virtue and simple living. Montaigne uses them as examples of how we judge people from different eras by our own standards instead of understanding their context.
Modern Usage:
Like when we watch old movies and think the actors look 'weird' just because of different hairstyles and clothing trends.
Doublet
A close-fitting jacket worn by men in Montaigne's time. He uses changing doublet styles to show how passionately people defend current fashions, then mock those same fashions years later.
Modern Usage:
Think skinny jeans vs. baggy jeans - each generation swears their version is obviously the right one.
Custom vs. Reason
Montaigne's central distinction between doing things because 'that's how we've always done it' versus actually thinking through whether something makes sense. He argues most people follow custom blindly.
Modern Usage:
Like following workplace policies that everyone knows are pointless, but nobody questions because 'that's just how things are done here.'
Cultural Relativism
The idea that customs and values vary dramatically between different societies and time periods. Montaigne catalogs Roman practices to show how arbitrary many social rules are.
Modern Usage:
Recognizing that what seems 'normal' to us might seem completely bizarre to people from other countries or time periods.
Intellectual Independence
Montaigne's goal of thinking for yourself rather than automatically accepting whatever society currently believes. He wants readers to examine their own assumptions.
Modern Usage:
Like questioning whether you actually like something or just think you should because everyone else does.
Social Conformity
The human tendency to change opinions based on what's currently popular or acceptable. Montaigne shows how people forget they ever believed differently.
Modern Usage:
Social media trends where everyone suddenly has the same opinion, then acts like they always felt that way.
Characters in This Chapter
Fabricius
Historical example
Ancient Roman leader used by Montaigne to illustrate how we judge past figures by current standards. Represents the danger of cultural blindness.
Modern Equivalent:
The old-school coworker whose methods seem outdated but actually work
Laelius
Historical example
Another Roman leader Montaigne references to show how we dismiss people from other eras as 'barbarous' simply because they lived differently than we do.
Modern Equivalent:
The immigrant neighbor whose customs seem strange until you understand the reasoning behind them
Key Quotes & Analysis
"When they wore the busk of their doublets up as high as their breasts, they stiffly maintained that they were in their proper place; some years after it was slipped down betwixt their thighs, and then they could laugh at the former fashion as uneasy and intolerable."
Context: Describing how people passionately defend current fashion trends
This perfectly captures human psychology - we don't just prefer current styles, we convince ourselves they're objectively better and mock our past selves. Montaigne shows this applies to all beliefs, not just clothing.
In Today's Words:
People will swear their current style is obviously the best, then a few years later act like anyone who dressed that way was an idiot.
"I should willingly pardon our people for admitting no other pattern or rule of perfection than their own peculiar manners and customs; for 'tis a common vice, not of the vulgar only, but almost of all men."
Context: Opening the essay with his main observation about human nature
Montaigne acknowledges this isn't just a problem for uneducated people - even smart, educated people fall into this trap. He's being honest about universal human weakness.
In Today's Words:
I get why people think their way of doing things is the only right way - pretty much everyone does this, not just ignorant people.
"A man would think there was a certain kind of madness crept in amongst them, that infatuates their understandings to this strange degree."
Context: Describing how completely people abandon old beliefs for new ones
Montaigne uses strong language - 'madness' and 'infatuates' - to show how irrational this behavior really is when you step back and observe it objectively.
In Today's Words:
It's like people go temporarily insane and completely forget they ever thought differently.
Thematic Threads
Social Expectations
In This Chapter
Montaigne shows how people passionately defend whatever customs are currently popular, then mock those same customs later
Development
Expanded from earlier chapters to show how social pressure creates false certainty
In Your Life:
You might catch yourself defending workplace policies you privately think are stupid just because they're current practice
Identity
In This Chapter
Our sense of what's 'right' or 'normal' shifts completely based on what society currently accepts
Development
Builds on earlier themes of self-knowledge by showing how external forces shape internal beliefs
In Your Life:
You might realize your strong opinions about parenting or relationships are just absorbed from your current social circle
Class
In This Chapter
Different social groups develop different customs, each convinced their way is obviously superior
Development
Continues exploration of how social position shapes perspective
In Your Life:
You might notice how your family's way of handling money or conflict feels 'natural' until you encounter other approaches
Personal Growth
In This Chapter
True growth requires stepping back from social pressure to examine beliefs independently
Development
Advances the theme by showing intellectual independence as a learnable skill
In Your Life:
You might start questioning which of your strong convictions are actually just temporary social programming
You now have the context. Time to form your own thoughts.
Discussion Questions
- 1
Montaigne says we defend current fashions passionately, then mock them years later. Can you think of a belief or practice you once felt certain about but now see differently?
analysis • surface - 2
Why do you think we forget our previous beliefs so completely when our opinions change? What makes us so confident that our current views are the 'right' ones?
analysis • medium - 3
Where do you see this pattern of 'mistaking customs for truths' playing out in your workplace, family, or community today?
application • medium - 4
How could you tell the difference between a principle worth defending and a temporary custom you're just following because everyone else does?
application • deep - 5
What does Montaigne's observation about Roman customs teach us about human nature and our relationship to social pressure?
reflection • deep
Critical Thinking Exercise
The Time Traveler Test
Pick something you feel strongly about right now—a workplace rule, parenting approach, or social expectation. Imagine explaining this belief to someone from 100 years ago and someone from 100 years in the future. Write down what each person might find confusing or ridiculous about your position. Then identify what core principle (if any) remains constant across all three time periods.
Consider:
- •Notice when you feel defensive about explaining your position—that's often a sign you're defending custom rather than principle
- •Pay attention to which parts of your belief seem obviously universal versus culturally specific
- •Consider whether the core value could be expressed differently in different times and places
Journaling Prompt
Write about a time when you changed your mind about something important. What triggered the change? How did you feel about your previous belief afterward? What does this reveal about how social pressure shapes your thinking?
Coming Up Next...
Chapter 50: Two Ways to See the World
In the next chapter, you'll discover your perspective shapes your reality more than external circumstances, and learn judging yourself in small moments reveals your true character. These insights reveal timeless patterns that resonate in our own lives and relationships.