The Unity Of The Mind And Body

Want to read the rest of this paper? Join Essayworld today to view this entire essay and over 50,000 other term papers

In Montaigne’s essay “On the Education of Children,” Montaigne stresses the importance of education, but only promotes a select few genres of education as appropriate. Montaigne links these few genres of education directly to the well being of the body. First, Montaigne declares that “The mind that harbours philosophy should, by its soundness, make the body sound also”(pg.67). Here he argues that anyone who is soundly based in the philosophy of the “great thinkers” of history will have the wellness of body that they desire. He states that “ The most manifest sign of wisdom is a constant happiness; it’s state…always serene”(pg.67). Montaigne’s obvious foremost concern is that people be educated in the thinking of great thinkers. Secondly, Montaigne addresses the types of free thinking that are appropriate for a healthy mind and body. He argues that the free thought of a person should be based in ...

Get instant access to over 50,000 essays. Write better papers. Get better grades. Already a member? Login

imagination. He declares that the imagination, unlike freethinking based in acceptable knowledge, leads directly to an unhealthy body. Montaigne first attacks the sheer power of the imagination. Montaigne states regarding the imagination that “Everyone feels its impact, but some are knocked over by it”(pg.36). He contends that the imagination is something that slowly begins to take over the mind of a person and drive them further from the appropriate lines of learning. He argues that the imagination leads to the harm of the body. His first claim on this is that bad thoughts, such as having bodily failures (Montaigne uses the example of impotence), are spawned from the ...

Succeed in your coursework without stepping into a library. Get access to a growing library of notes, book reports, and research papers in 2 minutes or less.

CITE THIS PAGE: