I’ve noticed that a preponderance of the search terms that bring people to Sidebar concern depositions. And I have often responded. Well, maybe “often” is understating the case: see here, here, here, here, here…
And here.
And here.
And here.
So I’m thinking you’d all like to see an entire deposition transcript, right?
Conveniently, I recently conducted my own deposition of a well-known guy who was not a defendant but was an expert in the area of my concern and, indeed, bewilderment: life’s great questions.
For many years, I’ve been pondering those questions–which happen to be within rock ‘n’ roll song lyrics. Despite no research whatsoever–I can be lazy about such hi-falutin’ intellectual matters–I was never able to come up with authoritative answers. I mean, “Wouldn’t it be nice?” Yeah, so? “What do you get when you fall in love?” Not answering that one.
But I knew who could and would: the great, often scatological, erotic and witty philosopher, storyteller and creator of the personal essay, Michel de Montaigne (1533-1592). Montaigne’s day job was as a lawyer and government official in Bordeaux, where I once spent a week running around after him.
I spent a great deal more time than a week reading all one thousand two hundred and sixty-nine pages of Montaigne’s essays (Penguin Classics edition, translated and annotated by the marvelously named M.A. Screech).
The next post is the entire transcription of my deposition of Montaigne, who arrived at my office without a lawyer.