All the world knows me in my book, and my book in me.
Michel De MontaigneRead
I must accommodate my history to the hour: I may presently change, not only by fortune, but also by intention.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote emphasizes the importance of adapting to the present while acknowledging the potential for personal transformation.
Michel De Montaigne suggests that one's past experiences should not dictate their present actions. Instead, individuals have the power to change their circumstances and themselves through both external events and conscious decisions. This reflects a philosophy of embracing the flow of time and being proactive in shaping one's future.
Themes
ChangeHistoryIntentionTransformationAdaptation
In practice
Example use cases
This quote could be used during a motivational speech about personal growth and resilience.
More from Michel De Montaigne
All quotes βAll 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.
Michel De MontaigneRead
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.
Michel De MontaigneRead
There is not much less vexation in the government of a private family than in the managing of an entire state.
Michel De MontaigneRead
Those who have compared our life to a dream were right... we were sleeping wake, and waking sleep.
Michel De MontaigneRead
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.
Michel De MontaigneRead
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In a change of masters the poor change nothing except their master's name.
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