This painting is inspired by a real event, the visit that Montaigne paid to Tasso in the asylum where he was locked up, but does not respect the historical truth.

The stairs are represented in a very sober manner, and the vault which overhangs them accentuates the effect of narrowness and darkness of the place, in opposition to the bright light which comes from outside.

The light on the character highlights his condition, and according to François Pupil, the "scattered papers are an obvious sign of Tasso's desperate inspiration."

[1][2] In this work, the painter stages a theatrical and stereotyped madness thanks to the dramatization created by the arrival of the light from the front, which illuminates Tasso.

According to the book La peinture lyonnaise au XIXe siècle (1995), "The lighting points are very localized; restricted to a single central bay which creates a simple, theatrical and striking effect".

The theatricality also comes from the opposition in the representation of the outfits of the two main characters, produced with extreme care, even if the difference of lighting predominates and relegates them to the background.

This work shows a miserable image of a man through the character of Tasso, mad and exposed to everyone's gaze, and seeks to inspire pity with this representation which directly questions psychology and the human condition.