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Thoreau's Motive For Moving To Walden Essay

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Henry David Thoreau moved to Walden Pond in 1845, on land owned by Ralph Waldo Emerson, author of “Self-Reliance.” Walden shows influence from Emerson, with whom Thoreau was affiliated, but with whom he also disagrees in some respects. A common method of Thoreau’s throughout Walden is the depiction of a place or an action compared to a relevant element of ancient mythology, followed by an explanation of Thoreau’s ideas. Using his own experiences and relevant mythology, Thoreau best conveys his message of self-reliance and Transcendentalist values in “Where I Live and What I Live For,” “Solitude,” and “Conclusion.” Thoreau utilizes his surroundings in Walden Pond in “Where I Live and What I Live For” to explain how valuable nature was to his self-growth. In this essay, Thoreau explains his true motive for moving to Walden, explaining that he “wished to live deliberately [and that he] did not wish to live what was not life, [for] living is so dear” (Thoreau, 59). Thoreau makes it clear that he does not believe the way we live in society is true living, and he did not want to be a part of society if we were going to live in such a way. While Thoreau doesn’t expect us all to detach from …show more content…

Though nature compels him to stay, Thoreau knows that it’s time for him to leave Walden and return to society. He claims that he “left the woods for as good a reason as [he] went there,” because it seemed that he “had several more lives to live, and could not spare any more time for [his life in Walden]” (ibid. 209). As Thoreau reflects on his departure from Walden, he reminds us that we are not limited to one lifestyle; rather, ways of living are interchangeable, and we should feel free to switch from one to the other. Even doctors recommend a change of scenery to the ill, and transcendentalists like Thoreau advocates for a change of lifestyle to those who are still searching for

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