All the world knows me in my book, and my book in me.
Michel De MontaigneRead
Que sçais-je?" (What do I know?)
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote expresses skepticism about the completeness of human knowledge.
Michel De Montaigne's question 'Que sçais-je?' challenges individuals to reflect on their own understanding and the limitations of their knowledge. It emphasizes humility in the pursuit of wisdom, suggesting that true insight comes from recognizing what we do not know, encouraging a lifelong journey of learning and exploration beyond certainties.
Themes
KnowledgeHumilityWisdomLearningSkepticism
In practice
Example use cases
In a classroom discussion about the value of questioning what we know.
More from Michel De Montaigne
All quotes →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.
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.
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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.
Michel De MontaigneRead
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