Henry David Thoreau And Walden Comparison

Author, Henry David Thoreau and Mary Oliver are both very passionate about nature and what it has to offer in life, as well as the symbolism behind nature and its creatures in their works of literature, in “Walden”, and “The House of Light”, Both authors discuss their views of nature and the beauty of the world that they want to make familiar to their audience. In this essay, I’ll provide my reasoning behind this statement.

Thoreau argues that many are incapable of achieving that goal because they live in a world full of details that takes focus away from living life. Moreover, we have so much on our plates, that it takes time away from reflecting on the personal self. Throughout the excerpt, Thoreau uses metaphors to approach the obstacles faced when living life in a world where everything must be done. Thoreau states that the competition for resources create a world where we are often cruel and compete with one another. In order to achieve the goal of living life fully, Thoreau proposes solutions that allow us to find our true purpose, take inconsideration nature and

One of Thoreau’s famous quotes is, “Simplicity, simplicity, simplicity!” This means to make ones’ life as simple as possible. He thinks that the poor are the fortunate ones since they have the least to look after and worry about while the rich have so much to look after that they do not have time for themselves. Living a simple life enables one to be free of commitment and obligations. One only has to worry about one’s self.

Nature is a major transcendental value which both Emerson and Thoreau thrive off of. Emerson

The essay by E.B. White and the original work by Henry David Thoreau on "Walden" both reflect on the serenity of Thoreau's Walden Pond. Here Thoreau gives the tone of the simple pleasures of nature, " As I walk along the stony shore of the pond in my shirt-sleeves, though it is cool as well as cloudy and windy, and I see nothing special to attract me, all the elements are unusually congenial to me. The bullfrogs trump to usher in the night, and the note of the whip-poor-will is borne on the rippling wind from over the water. Sympathy with the fluttering alder and poplar leaves almost takes away my breath; yet, like the lake, my serenity is rippled but not ruffled. These small waves raised by the evening wind are as remote from storm as the smooth reflecting surface. Though it is now dark, the wind still blows and roars in the wood, the waves still dash, and some creatures lull the rest with their notes. The repose is never complete. The wildest animals do not repose, but seek their prey now; the fox, and skunk, and rabbit, now roam the fields and woods without fear." He is separated from the rest of the bustling world and happy that way. Thoreau's work was one that was thought provoking and solemn in tone and he had a simple yet detailed style that gave you a clear picture of the place he was living.

Henry Thoreau once famously noted that he had "traveled much in Concord," and over the years, scholars have traveled equally much in Thoreau, finding in him a chorus Of "representative men," to borrow a title from his friend and mentor Ralph Waldo Emerson. He is the exemplar of Emersonian self-reliance; he is the man who puts transcendental philosophy into practice on the shores of Walden Pond; he is the voice of political conscience, forerunner of Gandhi and King; and, increasingly of late, he is a prominent poster boy for American environmentalism

“Emerson inspired his audience with the excitement of taking part in a renaissance in which the human mind was about to step up to a higher plane of understanding.” When Emerson met Thoreau, he immediately recognized the intellectual curiosity and writing ability he possessed and took him as his protégé. With Emerson’s sage wisdom and friendship, Thoreau was able to strengthen his already deeply held beliefs about nature and society and share them with the world. As Thoreau and Emerson grew in fame and followers, they were able to launch the social movement of Transcendentalism, which maintained the core tenants that both Thoreau and Emerson espoused, that of the inherent goodness and beneficial aspects of nature, and the corrupting influences of American society. With the changing cultural climate that Thoreau was now a leader of, he was finally able to arrive at the inspiration that led him to develop his influential ideas regarding wildness and the woods on Walden

The chapter entitled “Conclusion” is a fitting and compelling final chapter to Thoreau’s Walden. Throughout Walden, Thoreau delves into his surroundings, the very specifics of nature, and what he was thinking about, without employing any metaphors and including none of his poignant aphorisms. However, placed among these at-times tedious sections, come spectacular and wholly enjoyable interludes of great and profound thought from a writer that has become extremely popular in modern America. His growth of popularity over such contemporary favorites as Emerson in our modern era stems from the fact that Thoreau calls for an “ideological revolution to simplification” in our lives. This

In Walden, he says “Our life is frittered away by detail.” this says that we shouldn’t be worrying our lives with being perfect and he also says “Simplicity, simplicity, simplicity!”. He stresses being simple because he sees that we ruin ours lives trying to the best when we should just be average and simple. Walden is one of his examples of transcendentalism.

In April 1992, a young man named Chris McCandless, also known as Alexander Supertramp, stepped into the Alaskan bush on a journey to escape the materialistic society he came from and to pursue a life of adventure. Over a century earlier in 1845, another young man, Henry David Thoreau, built himself a small cabin in the wilderness with similar intentions. Both their adventures were recorded in Into the Wild, by Jon Krakauer, and Walden, by Henry David Thoreau, respectively. Although they had some similar beliefs, their mindsets were often different; both disregarded advice of others, though for different reasons, neither connected solitude to loneliness, and both men had different reasons for choosing materialistic free lifestyles.

Ralph Waldo Emerson was raised during one of the most significant periods of time, known as Transcendentalism. He was taught the bible and was daily becoming a minister until circumstances changed his whole view of life. He started questioning the typical belief system, which was part of this movement, people thinking for themselves. In his short story entitled “Nature,” we get a glimpse of how people thought and what went on in some peoples’ minds. “Nature” embodies a few ideas of Transcendentalism, but two stick out.

In New England, around the early nineteenth century, two men were voicing their beliefs on the world, how we as individuals should be, and what should really matter to us. These two men were the writers Ralph Waldo Emerson and David Thoreau. Emerson was the first and wrote a collection of essays that includes one of the more popular Self Reliance, this then inspired Thoreau to write his own work Walden. Since Thoreau wrote Walden after Emerson wrote Self Reliance there are similarities in the two works but there are also differences given that Thoreau’s own opinion shone through in his work, and these similarities and differences are historical settings, cultural environmental, and aesthetic principles.

He insists that the natural world is beautiful, and people should spend their time in it. In his essay Nature, Emerson says “Nature never wears a mean appearance/ Nature never becomes a toy to a wise spirit”(Emerson 1).

To fully understand and appreciate “Nature” by Ralph Waldo Emerson, as well as his other works and those that followed him, it is important to grasp his devout belief in the concept of transcendentalism. Emerson believed that to truly enjoy a well-rounded, bountiful life one must be not only aware but in tune with nature and realize that it is as important (if not more) than natural education. The idea of pushing back against the societal normal which was standard education and following what was considered the appropriate formula for success proved one of Emerson's greatest achievements. Armed with the belief that we have all the power within ourselves to connect with nature and access the most inner parts of our mind without the aid of

Nature, Ralph Waldo Emerson long essay, was written in 1836, and at the time it presented very progressive ideas. Not only Nature presented a novel way to connect with God, but it also changed, to some extent, previous beliefs about the natural world. For most of human history the wilderness was a place that provoked fear and meant trouble. Emerson argued differently, for him nature was part of God 's creation, and, thus could not mean any harm .Furthermore, he asserted that to truly experience the richness of the natural world, one should step in not only with an open mind, but also with a child like curiosity, and more importantly, is should be done in solitude.