In Montaigne's Essays, we find one of the most famous philosophical texts on voluntary death, the third chapter of Book II. Many commentators assess Montaigne's position as similar to Seneca's and to some other ancient authors', that is, a defense of the morality of killing oneself. Other scholars detect an unsolved oscillation of the French author on the subject. However, I try to present arguments showing that Montaigne's final opinion is against suicide. Therefore, it is undertaken a mapping of the multiple occurrences of the issue in the book, which go beyond the said chapter. Moreover, the distinction between the writing layers of the Essais in its various editions is stressed, putting in contrast the novelty of Montaigne's argumentative models to his classical influences.
freedom; belonging; suicide; Montaigne