All the world knows me in my book, and my book in me.
Michel De MontaigneRead
A straight oar looks bent in the water. What matters is not merely that we see things but how we see them.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Perspective shapes our understanding of reality.
This quote by Michel De Montaigne emphasizes the importance of perspective in interpreting the world around us. It suggests that our perception can distort reality, similar to how an oar appears bent when placed in water, highlighting that how we see things often matters more than the things themselves.
Themes
PerspectivePerceptionRealityUnderstandingInterpretation
In practice
Example use cases
In a motivational speech about overcoming obstacles.
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.
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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.
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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.
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