“Soiez plus faciles à croire” Magical herbs from the Quart livre face the test of fiction

The “magical herbs” from the Quart livre are considered in this study from an epistemological perspective. Rabelais writes of them as part of a broader reflection on Pyrrhonism. The mirabilia incorporate a structure that is both circular and cumulative, reminiscent of the skeptical diallel mode. By concluding his chapter with an invitation to an allegorical reading, Rabelais creates a shift that reinforces the skeptical dimension of the passage.