“What do I know?” 

This is Montaigne’s motto and his most famous epigram. It speaks to the need to inquire into oneself before one can presume to understand one’s life and the outside world.

“I am myself the subject of my book […]” 

Montaigne’s essays are an inquiry into the workings of his own mind and heart. He freely admits that such a project is self-centered, and he invites us to read his words only if they seem useful to us as well.

“It is not certain where Death awaits us, so let us await it everywhere.” 

It is better to confront death directly than to shy away from it and, living in fear, allow it to steal our lives before our time. This runs counter to how many modern Americans live their day-to-day lives.