Michel de Montaigne Quotes

the essence of philosophy is not the possession of the truth but the search for truth. ... Philosophy means to be on the way. Its questions are more essential than its answers, and every answer becomes a new question.

Inquiry is fatal to certainty.

Between truth and the search for it, I choose the second.

The job is to ask questions-it always was-and to ask them as inexorably as I can. And to face the absence of precise answers with a certain humility.

The curse of a journalist is that he always has more questions than answers.

Question everything. Your love, your religion, your passion. If you don't have questions, you'll never find answers.

William James used to preach the "will-to-believe." For my part, I should wish to preach the "will-to-doubt." None of our beliefs are quite true; all at least have a penumbra of vagueness and error. What is wanted is not the will to believe, but the will to find out, which is the exact opposite.

Opinions are made to be changed - or how is truth to be got at?

Uncertainty is a very good thing: it's the beginning of an investigation, and the investigation should never end.

I'm not sure what theory is, unless it's the pursuit of fundamental questions.

For me, there are no answers, only questions, and I am grateful that the questions go on and on. I don't look for an answer because I don't think there is one. I'm very glad to be the bearer of a question.

I don't think you want to give all the answers, but I think every answer you do give should bring up another question, and not all questions should be answered.

I make work not to give answers but to question things.

If a man will begin with certainties, he shall end in doubts, but if he will content to begin with doubts, he shall end in certainties.

Premature certainty is the enemy of the truth.

Men who are lovers of wisdom [i.e., philosophers] must be inquirers into many things.

I think it's okay to ask questions. I don't think everything is answerable though.

The key to all sciences is unquestionably the question mark. To the word How? we owe most of our greatest discoveries. Wisdom in life may perhaps consist in asking ourselves on all occasions: Why?

In doubting we come to inquiry; by inquiry we perceive the truth.

I always say I write because I have lots of questions, not because I have any answers.

To philosophize is to doubt.

Unless you have the courage to doubt you will never come to know the truth.

Doubt is often the beginning of wisdom.

The thing is, not to stop questioning.

Questions outlive the answers.