Michel de Montaigne Quotes

A wise man sees as much as he ought, not as much as he can.

The finest souls are those that have the most variety and suppleness.

There are no truths, only moments of claryty passing for answers.

Atheism being a proposition as unnatural as monstrous, difficult also and hard to establish in the human understanding, how arrogant soever, there are men enough seen, out of vanity and pride, to be the authors of extraordinary and reforming opinions, and outwardly to affect the profession of them; who, if they are such fools, have, nevertheless, not the power to plant them in their own conscience.

L'homme d'entendement n'a rien perdu, s'il a soi-même.

If I had even the slightest grasp upon my own faculties, I would not make essays, I would make decisions.

One may be humble out of pride.

I speak the truth not so much as I want, but as much as I dare, and I dare a little more as I grow older.

There is, nevertheless, a certain respect and a general duty of humanity that ties us, not only to beasts that have life and sense, but even to trees and plants.

Each man calls barbarism whatever is not his own practice.

Saturninus said, "Comrades, you have lost a good captain to make him an ill general."

A man must be a little mad if he does not want to be even more stupid.

From books all I seek is to give myself pleasure by an honourable pastime: or if I do study, I seek only that branch of learning which deals with knowing myself and which teaches me how to live and die well...

We are, I know not how, double in ourselves, so that what we believe we disbelieve, and cannot rid ourselves of what we condemn.

The art of dining well is no slight art, the pleasure not a slight pleasure.