Montaigne on Cunning Tricks and the Power of True Connection
You probably know the feeling: you’re in a conversation where someone keeps dancing around the truth. Words are twisted, intentions disguised, and you sense the other person isn’t truly present — they’re performing. It’s precisely this kind of unease that Michel de Montaigne captures so brilliantly in his essay ‘On Vain Cunning.’ But while Montaigne exposes the hollowness of clever tricks, he simultaneously points toward something far more profound: the value of genuine human connection. It’s a theme that resonates deeply with the very heart of Freemasonry. When Cleverness Becomes an Obstacle In Essay 54 of the first book of his celebrated Essais, Montaigne examines the phenomenon of vain cunning — the clever manoeuvre, the elaborate scheme, the trick that seems brilliant on the surface but ultimately destroys more than it achieves. Drawing examples from classical antiquity and military history, he shows how generals and rulers undermined themselves by placing too much trust in deception and stratagem. His conclusion is sobering: those who constantly manoeuvre lose touch with reality — and with the people around them. That insight extends far beyond the battlefield or the diplomatic table. You can probably recognise it in your own life. How often do you […]