Comparing Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau

Emerson and Thoreau's pieces of literature can help a teenager understand the importance of originality. This is because each of their pieces of writing inculcate ideas about being original, which can influence teens to act more like themselves rather than how society wants them to be. For instance, in one of his pieces "Self Reliance," Emerson expresses, "As soon as he has acted or spoken with eclat, he is a common person watched by the sympathy or the hatred of hundreds, whose affections must now enter into his

I really liked Thoreau’s belief that the mainstream American lifestyle along with the technology of it all has really lessened our overall experience of life itself. We’re so caught up in wanting the newest iphone or fanciest car, instead of taking time to enjoy life as it is, without the unnecessary accessories or what we see as necessities. The quote from “Walden” that says “The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation...a stereotyped but unconscious despair is concealed even under what are called

The essay by Henry David Thoreau, “Where I lived and What I Lived For” tells Thoreau beliefs of how society should live. He asks deep questions such as, “Why should we live with such hurry and waste of life?” to encourage the reader to contemplate their lives and values. He said, “Our life is frittered away by detail.” and goes on to emphasize the value of, “Simplicity, simplicity, simplicity!” Thoreau states simplicity and self sufficiency are virtues society should live by; however, they potentially jeopardize the community and are consequently not viable today.

While Emerson and Thoreau certainly have difference of opinions, they recognize the need for public discussion and discourse. Emerson declares “a foolish consistency” to be “the hobgoblin of little minds” (Emerson 367). This is shown in their essays “Self-Reliance” and “Civil Disobedience” in which they support individuality and personal expression. Despite their contrasting views of society and government, the two most

I share this view of society with Emerson: “Society is a joint-stock company, in which the members agree, for the better securing of his bread to each shareholder, to surrender the liberty and culture of the eater. The virtue of request is conformity. Self-Reliance is its aversion.”

In “Self-Reliance”, Emerson adopts the rhetorical strategy of aphorisms to annex what he thinks by enriching his thesis, while allowing a pause in the reader’s mind to comprehend just what he is saying. Emerson’s honest aphorism advises people to actually believe in themselves in order to be triumphant by saying, “To believe your own thought, to believe that what is true for you in your private heart, is true for all men, --- that is genius” (Emerson 1) and “Trust thyself: every heart vibrates to that iron string” (Emerson 3). The aphorism demonstrates that believing in themselves, and what is important to them, the reader, is what everyone else does, that being an individual is a genius idea. Comparing this to what society, especially the younger individuals with in society, they themselves hear differently, that they

Both Emerson and Thoreau believe that in order to find deep meaning in life, you must live simply.In addition to living simply, both men believe in the value of the soul. Thoreau goes to the woods to contemplate life and to get in touch with his soul He wants to get in touch with his soul. He wants to, "get the whole and genuine meanness of it" (Thoreau 235). Emerson similarly says, "the one thing in the world of value is the active soul" (Emerson 218). He also tells of the soul’s "boundless resources" (Emerson 218). All people have a soul, however, not everyone’s soul is active.

     Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau changed our lives. How? Well, the answer is not so simple as the statement. To understand fully how they affected our lives, we have to understand the philosophy of Emerson and Thoreau, and the relationship between the two. So let’s begin with the relationship between Emerson and Thoreau.

A significant philosopher of the pre-Civil War era of the United States, Henry David Thoreau appeared to be above the standard with his philosophically driven life style. He wrote detailed accounts of his life in his book titled Walden, in which he expressed his desire to escape the confining pressures of human society. His second chapter lauded the concepts of individualism and self-sufficiency, yet he never took into account the potential harm of his mentality, for it could hurt individuals as well as communities, and modern life simply cannot support his ideals.

For Thoreau, the escape from society was a way to deeply learn about himself and human nature. He writes, “Every morning was a cheerful invitation to make my life of equal simplicity, and I may say innocence, with Nature herself” (Thoreau 72). This simple way of life allowed Thoreau to analyze himself and tendencies within society. He explains the effects of this solitary life on a person: “In proportion as he simplifies his life, the laws of the universe will appear less complex, and solitude will not be solitude, nor poverty poverty, nor weakness weakness” (253). Thoreau was able to discover flaws in society. He states, “... men establish and conform their daily life of routine and habit every where, which still is built on purely illusory foundations” (78). Unlike Hester and Sethe, the societal norms Thoreau experiences are not painful punishments or dehumanizing treatment. However, the “opinion, and prejudice, and tradition, and delusion, and appearance, that alluvion which covers the globe … through poetry, philosophy and religion” (80), can still have a profound and often negative effect on individuals and society as a whole. Thoreau is able to overcome these societal norms because he separates himself from them. Thoreau explains of humankind, “When we are unhurried and wise, we perceive that only great and worthy things have any permanent and absolute existence,-that petty fears and petty pleasures are but the

Imagine a world where there is no society. Imagine if there was no technology and everybody just lived in isolation. In Emerson’s essay, “Self-Reliance,” he illustrates his ideas on the tenet by using metaphors. Nonconformity means being mentally and physically separated from society, a quality which sometimes overlaps with the ideas behind self-reliance. In “Where I Lived and What I Lived For,” Thoreau uses personal experiences, description, and problem-and-solution. Emerson and Thoreau begin by using different techniques, Thoreau using problem-and-solution and description, while Emerson uses cause-and-effect, yet both use cause-and-effect to develop the idea that one should be independent of society in the end.

In the year of 1600’s, the United States of America was being colonized by European countries especially by England. However, on 4th of July 1776 America became independent after having drafted the “Declaration of Independence” initiated by Thomas Jefferson [History of the United States, Wikipedia]. The difference between these two time periods shows that Britain had colonized America for about 176 years which ultimately led to prosper European cultures. Although America became an independent nation, European culture was still playing its role. Therefore, American writers namely Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau presented an idea about American Identity.

The autobiography “Walden” by Henry David Thoreau is a first-person narrative explaining what Thoreau personally experienced from his experiment after two years of living at Walden Pond, encompassed by nature. Thoreau isolates himself from society and martial earnings to gain a higher understanding of what it means to have freedom as an individual. He simplifies his life to get closer to nature to learn more about himself and society. If we focus too much on obtaining these so-called comforts of life. We blur the fact that these luxuries are a hindrance to self-freedom. In society, if you do not follow the same rhythm as everyone else. You will be seen as an out casting in the community. That is not freedom

Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau expressed their feelings, doubts, and predictions about the current state of the American people in the 19th century in individually written essays. Henry David Thoreau's Walden and Ralph Waldo Emerson's Nature, represent parallel beliefs concerning simplicity, material goods and the power of the individual's mind and spirit. “In the presence of nature, a wild delight runs through the man, in spite of real sorrows. Nature says, -- he is my creature, and maugre all his impertinent griefs, he shall be glad with me” (Nature) How can you really know yourself when you are being socially defined by the people and material objects that surround you?

    Thoreau presents his views on the news, technology, and a simple lifestyle. He believes that the news is constant throughout time with only a few minor changes in specifics; therefore the news should only be worried about once. Thoreau explains that tools are useful, yet often in society man becomes a tool of his tools. Through this, Thoreau believes that tools should be used as an aid, not as a necessity. Another principle that Thoreau advocates for in his essay is simplicity. He describes the importance of a simple lifestyle by comparing to nature, which is the most simple of lifestyles.