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For among other things he had been counseled to bring me to love knowledge and duty by my own choice, without forcing my will, and to educate my soul entirely through gentleness and freedom.
Michel De Montaigne
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Interpretation

What this quote means

True education fosters a love for knowledge and duty through gentle guidance rather than coercion.

In this quote, Montaigne emphasizes the importance of nurturing a genuine appreciation for knowledge and responsibility. He advocates for an educational approach that promotes personal choice and freedom, allowing individuals to cultivate their intellect and moral character through gentle encouragement rather than forceful imposition.

Themes

KnowledgeEducationGentlenessFreedomDuty

In practice

Example use cases

In a classroom setting, a teacher can share this quote to inspire a more compassionate and student-centered approach to education.

More from Michel De Montaigne

All the world knows me in my book, and my book in me.
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All I say is by way of discourse, and nothing by way of advice. I should not speak so boldly if it were my due to be believed.
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Pythagoras used to say that life resembles the Olympic Games: a few people strain their muscles to carry off a prize; others bring trinkets to sell to the crowd for gain; and some there are, and not the worst, who seek no other profit than to look at the show and see how and why everything is done; spectators of the life of other people in order to judge and regulate their own.
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There is not much less vexation in the government of a private family than in the managing of an entire state.
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Those who have compared our life to a dream were right... we were sleeping wake, and waking sleep.
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Such as are in immediate fear of a losing their estates, of banishment, or of slavery, live in perpetual anguish, and lose all appetite and repose; whereas such as are actually poor, slaves, or exiles, ofttimes live as merrily as other folk.
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Quote by Michel De Montaigne | QuoteProject