All the world knows me in my book, and my book in me.
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.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Life can be viewed as a grand performance where some actively participate, some seek material gain, and others observe to learn.
In this quote, Michel De Montaigne compares life to the Olympic Games, where individuals play different roles. Some strive for glory and rewards, others are motivated by financial gain, while there are those who simply watch and reflect on the experiences of others. This reflection allows the observers to understand and potentially improve their own lives. The quote encourages contemplation of our own positions and purposes in the grand spectacle of life.
Themes
LifeObservationOlympic GamesParticipationSelf-Reflection
In practice
Example use cases
In a motivational speech about living life fully and not as mere spectators.
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
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
I have never seen a greater monster or miracle in the world than myself.
Michel De MontaigneRead
Similar quotes
All abstract sciences are nothing but the study of relations between signs.
Denis DiderotRead
Any belief in Creators or Purpose is wishful thinking. And when you point out that perhaps ALL thinking is wishful, reactions of intense irritation give evidence that we are not dealing with logic but with faith.
William S. BurroughsRead
I realize now that people are not thinking about you and me or caring what is said about us. They are thinking about themselves-before breakfast, after breakfast, and right on until ten minutes past midnight. They would be a thousand times more concerned about a slight headache of their own than they would about the news of your death or mine.
Dale CarnegieRead
As for oblivion, well, we can wait a little while for that.
Anne RiceRead
[W]e must never allow the future to collapse under the burden of memory.
Milan KunderaRead
The American dream is not that every man must be level with every other man. The American dream is that every man must be free to become whatever God intends he should become.
Ronald ReaganRead