Walden, Economy Study Guide Questions

Henry David Thoreau was a great American writer, philosopher, and naturalist of the 1800’s who’s writings have influenced many famous leaders in the 20th century, as well as in his own lifetime. Henry David Thoreau was born in Concord, Massachusetts in 1817, where he was later educated at Harvard University. Thoreau was a transcendentalist writer, which means that he believed that intuition and the individual conscience “transcend” experience and are better guides to truth than are the senses and logical reason (Prentice Hall 1174). Thoreau is well known for writing Walden Pond, Excursions, The Maine Woods, Cape Cod, and A Yankee in Canada. In 1849 Henry David Thoreau wrote an essay

Walden by Thoreau is written in first person about the events and ideas that came to him while he was living on his own in the 1800’s. During the excerpt he uses metaphors and talks about what he doesn’t like.

We can’t live without nature. It’s our home and way of life. Henry David Thoreau wrote a piece about Walden Pond in the springtime. Thoreau discusses how nature has so much to offer. His use of anaphora, diction, and imagery helps to show not only his love for nature, but the impact it has on us.

Thoreau reflects similar ideas in his description of Walden Pond, which serves as a kind of mirror for Thoreau's life. He determines the depth of Walden in several places and relates this to a man's character. He proposes that one could "draw lines through the aggregate of a man's particular daily behaviors and waves of life into his coves and inlets, and where they intersect will be the height or depth of his character"(319). Thoreau goes as far to say that one can approximate a person's depth of character by simply examining his surroundings. He states that a man with "mountainous circumstances . . . suggests a corresponding depth in him"(320) while "a low and smooth shore proves him shallow"(320). In addition, Thoreau describes "the life in us like the water in the river"(350). He expounds on this idea of water flowing down a river just as men's lives progress and flow. When the water runs its course and life comes to an end, Thoreau implies that a mark and memory remain as "far the inland bank which the stream anciently washed"(350). Maclean's concluding remarks are strikingly similar and exemplify Thoreau's belief. In the end, Maclean has outlived his family and friends but believes he can still hear their voices through the river. He writes, "Eventually, all things merge into one, and a river runs through it. The river was cut by the world's greatest flood and runs over rocks from the basement of time . . . . Under the rocks are the words, and some of the

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

Again in Walden, Thoreau wrote, “I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately” [1854]. It is quite strange that Thoreau had chosen to live in woods purposely. Perhaps one reason can be that he is a transcendentalist but one must not forget that he had discovered about the Walden Pond when he was deliberately living in the woods. However, another possible explanation can be that woods are not dominated or are controlled by anyone, nature lives freely in world. Therefore, a reader can

The summer of 1845 found Henry David Thoreau living in a rude shack on the banks of Walden Pond. The actual property was owned by Ralph Waldo Emerson, the great American philosopher. Emerson had earlier published the treatise entitled "Nature," and the young Thoreau was profoundly affected by its call for individuality and self-reliance. Thoreau planted a small garden, took pen and paper, and began to record the of life at Walden.

Walden, by Henry David Thoreau describes the events and the thoughts that came to Thoreau all through his time living at Walden Pond in the eighteenth century. Henry David Thoreau was a poet and a theorist who experienced a life of ease so that he could create a relationship between nature, people, and God. His narrative in Walden depicted many themes, for example the significance of the natural world, the implication of development, the meaning of detail, and the connection between the body and mind. He also urbanized many theoretical ideas about living a simple and natural life, and

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.

In 1845, Thoreau realized where he needed to be so with Emerson’s permission he gained access to land that was near the Walden Pond. He explained the reasons behind his actions to Emerson’s. Thoreau had two purposes for the decision of moving to his land. Writing a book and another to conduct an experiment on living life. Emerson became intrigued with the reasons and gave permission to stay as long as he needed. Thoreau began construction of a small cabin in the woods over looking the pond and moved in on July 4, of 1845. Thoreau spent a total of two years on Walden Pond. Emerson sparked a flame and now has given leaves to the fire for a high flame. During his time in the cabin Thoreau was able to write his first book, which was a memorable

Henry David Thoreau, author of “Civil Disobedience” and Walden, has become one of the most influential authors of all time in the eyes of many. Though some might be led to believe his essays and writings, including “Where I Lived, and What I lived For”, make him a down to earth and even rugged author, as he spent some of his life in the forest. However, his life in the woods was not one of heavy duty work and he often was supported with objects and material possessions, contrary to what many of his essays describe. Although some might think of him as a cheater or a liar, Thoreau’s conflicting lifestyles prove him to be a literary genius as he successfully dictates a lifestyle he himself does not take part in throughout paragraphs one

A Comparison of Henry David Thoreau and Ralph Waldo Emerson’s Beliefs concerning Simplicity, the Value and Potential of Our Soul, and Our Imagination.Henry David Thoreau tests Ralph Waldo Emerson’s ideas about nature by living at Walden Pond, where he discovers that simplicity in physical aspects brings deepness to our mind, our soul to its fullest potential, and our imagination to be uplifted to change our lives. These two men believe that nature is what forces us not to depend on others’ ideas but to develop our own. Nature is ever changing so we must keep searching for explanations about human life. They feel that nature is the key to knowing all.Thoreau lives at Walden Pond to find the true meaning of life. He wants to experience

In “Walden”, Thoreau talks about his experience living at Walden pond for what he said was two years, two months and two days where he for the most part, isolated himself from civilization and supported himself with the help of no one else.

The mention of “Walden Pond” in stanza three by the white woman is linked in the Indian’s mind to “there are five Walden Ponds on my little reservation out West and at least a hundred more surrounding Spokane,” in stanza four. These larger images once again demonstrate the incapability of the white Americans to look deeper into other cultures and their sites surrounding them. The only reason the white woman recognizes Walden Pond is because it was made famous by a white American, Henry David Thoreau who wrote a book about his life in a house next to the pond, in which he takes on a simplistic life which mimics the Native American Indian life style. The Indian on the train, is unimpressed by this because he states that “I know the Indians were living stories around that pond before Walden's grandparents were born and before his grandparents' grandparents were born.”These lines display a certain amount of disdain by the Indian for what the white Americans believe to be historically important it

    “Where I Lived and What I Lived For” illustrates the philosophical thinking of Henry David Thoreau during his time at Walden Pond. Thoreau’s goal was to “front only the essential facts of live” and “live deliberately”. His essay is often revered for the self-sufficient and individualistic thinking that he brought to his readers, but despite all the reverence, such principles could tear apart a community. Although the essay was written in the 1850s, many of his arguments for self-sufficiency and individualism hold true today.