How did Michel de Montaigne use anecdotes and quotations in the Essays?

In his Essays, Michel de Montaigne utilized anecdotes and quotations as essential tools for engaging with the world and the thinkers of the past. He frequently sprinkled his writing with anecdotes drawn from ancient and contemporary authors, as well as popular lore, to reinforce his critical analysis of reality.1

Similarly, he peppered his work with quotations, viewing them as a method of interacting with the authors who surrounded him in his library. Montaigne carefully integrated these elements into the fabric of his book; they did not impinge upon the autonomy of his own ideas but instead served to spark or reinforce his trains of thought. By incorporating these external voices, Montaigne maintained a dialogue between the interiority of his private self and the exteriority of the world, all while remaining faithful to the spontaneous, wandering nature of his own mind.1