When I play with my cat, who knows if I am not a pastime to her more than she is to me?
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Montaigne questions the hierarchy between humans and animals, suggesting we may serve their amusement as they serve ours.
- In plain terms
- We might think we play with our pets, but they might be playing with us.
- What can you take from it?
- Recognize that animals have their own perspectives.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- How do you interact with animals?
- Do they have agency?
Another view
It anthropomorphizes animal behavior too much.
More from Michel de Montaigne
The easy, gentle, and sloping path...is not the path of true virtue. It demands a rough and thorny road.
Permalink to quote #27 The souls of emperors and cobblers are cast in the same mold...The same reason that makes us wrangle with a neighbor creates a war betwixt princes.
Permalink to quote #29 Mon metier et mon art, c'est vivre.
Permalink to quote #26
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