In his Essays, Montaigne establishes a distinction between particular and public errors. This difference can be understood in light of a political career filled with successes and failures. The Essays enabled their author to explain and justify some of these errors. It is even possible to consider the translation of Sebond’s Natural Theology as a youthful error and the later project to include La Boétie’s Discourse on Volontary Servitude in his Essays as a political error.