Quotes and Images From The Works of Michel De Montaigne

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A child should not be brought up in his mother's lap A gallant man does not give over his pursuit for being refused A generous heart ought not to belie its own thoughts A hundred more escape us than ever come to our knowledge A lady could not boast of her chastity who was never tempted A little cheese when a mind to make a feast A little thing will turn and divert us A man may always study, but he must not always go to school A man may govern himself well who cannot govern others so A man may play the fool in everything else, but not in poetry A man must either imitate the vicious or hate them A man must have courage to fear A man never speaks of himself without loss A man should abhor lawsuits as much as he may A man should diffuse joy, but, as much as he can, smother grief A man's accusations of himself are always believed A parrot would say as much as that A person's look is but a feeble warranty A well-bred man is a compound man A well-governed stomach is a great part of liberty A word ill taken obliterates ten years' merit Abhorrence of the patient are necessary circumstances Abominate that incidental repentance which old age brings Accept all things we are not able to refute Accommodated my subject to my strength Accursed be thou, as he that arms himself for fear of death Accusing all others of ignorance and imposition Acquiesce and submit to truth Acquire by his writings an immortal life Addict thyself to the study of letters Addresses his voyage to no certain, port Admiration is the foundation of all philosophy Advantageous, too, a little to recede from one's right Advise to choose weapons of the shortest sort Affect words that are not of current use Affection towards their husbands, (not) until they have lost them Affirmation and obstinacy are express signs of want of wit Affright people with the very mention of death Against my trifles you could say no more than I myself have said Age imprints more wrinkles in the mind than it does on the face Agesilaus, what he thought most proper for boys to learn? Agitated betwixt hope and fear Agitation has usurped the place of reason Alexander said, that the end of his labour was to labour All actions equally become and equally honour a wise man All apprentices when we come to it (death) All defence shows a face of war All I aim at is, to pass my time at my ease All I say is by way of discourse, and nothing by way of advice All judgments in gross are weak and imperfect All over-nice solicitude about riches smells of avarice All things have their seasons, even good ones All think he has yet twenty good years to come All those who have authority to be angry in my family Almanacs Always be parading their pedantic science Always complaining is the way never to be lamented Always the perfect religion Am as jealous of my repose as of my authority An advantage in judgment we yield to none An emperor, said he, must die standing An ignorance that knowledge creates and begets Ancient Romans kept their youth always standing at school And hate him so as you were one day to love him And we suffer the ills of a long peace Anger and hatred are beyond the duty of justice Any argument if it be carried on with method Any old government better than change and alteration Any one may deprive us of life; no one can deprive us of death Anything appears greatest to him that never knew a greater Anything becomes foul when commended by the multitude Anything of value in him, let him make it appear in his conduct Appetite comes to me in eating Appetite is more sharp than one already half-glutted by the eyes Appetite runs after that it has not Appetite to read more, than glutted with that we have Applaud his judgment than commend his knowledge Apprenticeship and a resemblance of death Apprenticeships that are to be served beforehand Apt to promise something less than what I am able to do Archer that shoots over, misses as much as he that falls short Armed parties (the true school of treason, inhumanity, robbery Arrogant ignorance Art that could come to the knowledge of but few persons Art thou not ashamed, said he to him, to sing so well? Arts of persuasion, to insinuate it into our minds As great a benefit to be without (children) As if anything were so common as ignorance As if impatience were of itself a better remedy than patience As we were formerly by crimes, so we are now overburdened by law Ashamed to lay out as much thought and study upon it Assurance they give us of the certainty of their drugs At least, if they do no good, they will do no harm At the most, but patch you up, and prop you a little Attribute facility of belief to simplicity and ignorance Attribute to itself; all the happy successes that happen Authority of the number and antiquity of the witnesses Authority to be dissected by the vain fancies of men Authority which a graceful presence and a majestic mien beget Avoid all magnificences that will in a short time be forgotten Away with that eloquence that enchants us with itself Away with this violence! away with this compulsion! Bashfulness is an ornament to youth, but a reproach to old age Be not angry to no purpose Be on which side you will, you have as fair a game to play Bears well a changed fortune, acting both parts equally well Beast of company, as the ancient said, but not of the herd Beauty of stature is the only beauty of men Because the people know so well how to obey Become a fool by too much wisdom Being as impatient of commanding as of being commanded Being dead they were then by one day happier than he Being over-studious, we impair our health and spoil our humour Belief compared to the impression of a seal upon the soul Believing Heaven concerned at our ordinary actions Best part of a captain to know how to make use of occasions Best test of truth is the multitude of believers in a crowd Best virtue I have has in it some tincture of vice Better at speaking than writing—Motion and action animate word Better have none at all than to have them in so prodigious a number Better to be alone than in foolish and troublesome company Blemishes of the great naturally appear greater Books go side by side with me in my whole course Books have many charming qualities to such as know how to choose Books have not so much served me for instruction as exercise Books I read over again, still smile upon me with fresh novelty Books of things that were never either studied or understood Both himself and his posterity declared ignoble, taxable Both kings and philosophers go to stool Burnt and roasted for opinions taken upon trust from others Business to-morrow But ill proves the honour and beauty of an action by its utility But it is not enough that our education does not spoil us By resenting the lie we acquit ourselves of the fault By suspecting them, have given them a title to do ill By the gods, said he, if I was not angry, I would execute you By the misery of this life, aiming at bliss in another Caesar: he would be thought an excellent engineer to boot Caesar's choice of death: the shortest Can neither keep nor enjoy anything with a good grace Cannot stand the liberty of a friend's advice Carnal appetites only supported by use and exercise Cato said: So many servants, so many enemies Ceremony forbids us to express by words things that are lawful Certain other things that people hide only to show them Change is to be feared Change of fashions Change only gives form to injustice and tyranny Cherish themselves most where they are most wrong Chess: this idle and childish game Chiefly knew himself to be mortal by this act Childish ignorance of many very ordinary things Children are amused with toys and men with words Cicero: on fame Civil innocence is measured according to times and places Cleave to the side that stood most in need of her cloak on one shoulder, my cap on one side, a stocking disordered College: a real house of correction of imprisoned youth Coming out of the same hole Commit themselves to the common fortune Common consolation, discourages and softens me Common friendships will admit of division Conclude the depth of my sense by its obscurity Concluding no beauty can be greater than what they see Condemn all violence in the education of a tender soul Condemn the opposite affirmation equally Condemnations have I seen more criminal than the crimes Condemning wine, because some people will be drunk Confession enervates reproach and disarms slander Confidence in another man's virtue Conscience makes us betray, accuse, and fight against ourselves Conscience, which we pretend to be derived from nature Consent, and complacency in giving a man's self up to melancholy Consoles himself upon the utility and eternity of his writings Content: more easily found in want than in abundance Counterfeit condolings of pretenders Courageous in death, not because his soul is immortal—Socrates Courtesy and good manners is a very necessary study Crafty humility that springs from presumption Crates did worse, who threw himself into the liberty of poverty Cruelty is the very extreme of all vices Culling out of several books the sentences that best please me Curiosity and of that eager passion for news Curiosity of knowing things has been given to man for a scourge Custom, replied Plato, is no little thing Customs and laws make justice Dangerous man you have deprived of all means to escape Dangers do, in truth, little or nothing hasten our end Dearness is a good sauce to meat Death can, whenever we please, cut short inconveniences Death conduces more to birth and augmentation than to loss Death discharges us of all our obligations Death has us every moment by the throat Death is a part of you Death is terrible to Cicero, coveted by Cato Death of old age the most rare and very seldom seen Deceit maintains and supplies most men's employment Decree that says, The court understands nothing of the matter Defence allures attempt, and defiance provokes an enemy Defend most the defects with which we are most tainted Defer my revenge to another and better time