This collection of reflective essays forms a "spiritual autobiography" of André Gide, a key figure of French letters André Gide, a literary and intellectual giant of twentieth-century France, mines his memories and personal observations in this collection of essays. Gide's reflections and commentary masterfully showcase his delicate writing style and evocative sensibility, yielding new insights on writers such as Goethe and contemporaries Joseph Conrad, Nicolas Poussin, Arthur Rimbaud, and Paul-Marie Verlaine. Through it all, Gide skillfully investigates humanity's contradictory nature and struggles to resolve the moral, political, and religious conflicts inherent in daily life.