Analyze Thoreau's Transcendentalist Ideas During His Stay At Walden

Followers of the Transcendentalist movement stressed the religious, philosophical and ideological importance of life. Henry David Thoreau was a staunch supporter of the movement. Thoreau felt that a person lived a good life by following his conscience and instincts. He also felt that materialism was a sure way to distract a person from leading a good and moral life. Thoreau proposed for the government to be involved in as little of a citizen's life as possible; he felt too much government control just complicated a person's life. Like most Transcendentalists, Thoreau believed there was a direct connection to God through nature. If a person appreciated nature he would gain a higher understanding of God. Finally, Thoreau encouraged

Thoreau, Emerson, and even Chris McCandless promoted peace, individualism, and the respect of all forms of nature. Transcendentalist authors encourage readers not only to express individual ideas, but to not be bothered by or conform to society. I believe these are wonderful lessons for every person to learn. These same ideas can be applied to my daily life in that I should be my own self and not a “follower” of the crowd. Next, transcendentalists advocate for a constant and increased respect of nature. As a person who loves to spend time outside, I agree with this idea. Emerson preaches the idea of the bond men can have with nature in his essay “Nature.” I agreed wholeheartedly with this message. Lastly, the idea of “true happiness coming only from service to others” struck me. As a firm believer in living a life for God and others, I concurred with this idea. In order for us to have true happiness with ourselves, we must live a life for others. The keys of transcendentalism have caused me to engage in some introspection and challenge my everyday actions. In final, transcendental ideas have prompted positive changes in my

Chris McCandless and Henry David Thoreau in their two story’s Into the Wild and Walden show us the world of Transcendentalism through their eyes. Transcendentalism is a religion, movement and a life style to some. It’s the idea of being equal amongst all humans no matter what race or decadence; it’s accomplishing and having self-wisdom, and being one with nature devoting your life to the wild. Chris McCandless’s decision to devoting his life to the perpetual and thick Alaskan forest, and the menacing obstacles he may face, mirrors the Transcendentalist beliefs of Thoreau. An example in Into The Wild it tell how McCandless shreds his money into bits and pieces , and that he walks into the wild with a bag of rice and a gun.

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

Emerson says, “Nature never wears a mean appearance… Nature is a setting that fits equally well as a comic or mourning piece.” He explains that people can look to nature in any situation—good or bad. It comforts us and gives us answers if we allow it. Emerson believes nature is our connect to God. In his essay “Nature,” he says, “I am part or a particle of God.” Emerson and Thoreau both believe man can find spiritual meaning through nature. Nature allows us to dig deep into our minds and souls. Thoreau moved to Walden Pond alone and away from society to find meaning in his life. In his essay “Walden,” he says, “I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had lived.” He tells us that through nature we can learn to depend on ourselves and reach our full potential to better our

Transcendentalism was what Emerson and Thoreau touched most with their writings. They took their words, and created something new that many people would later follow. Transcendentalism is the nature of being one with yourself, and learning to better yourself through nature, and self knowledge. The quote from above is an example of what the two figures preached. Emerson believed that consistency of thought was foolished, and he highlighted the fact that having a consistent mind was mindless. He believed people should have an open mind, and be able to look at things in different perspectives.

Henry David Thoreau was a nineteenth century American author who lived during the height of Transcendentalism. He became an important contributor to this movement (“H. D. T.” Poetry Foundation). Thoreau received much information about this movement from Emerson, a noteworthy friend of Thoreau. Thoreau wrote many significant works in American literature, including Walden and “Civil Disobedience.” The works of Henry David Thoreau were strongly influenced by the Transcendentalist movement and centered around his stay at Walden Pond.

Henry Thoreau’s masterpiece, Walden or a Life in the Woods, shows the impact transcendentalism had on Thoreau’s worldview. Transcendentalism is a philosophy that asserts the primacy of the spiritual over the material. Transcendentalism puts the emphasis on spiritual growth and understanding as opposed to worldly pleasures. Thoreau’s idea of transcendentalism stressed the importance of nature and being close to nature. He believed that nature was a metaphor for spiritual enlightenment. A walk in the woods therefore was a search for spiritual enlightenment. One should look ‘through’ nature, not merely ‘at’ her.

Thoreau did not only suffer from unfounded superiority, he was also an extreme hypocrite who failed to live up to the expectations he set for the rest of man. For instance, one of Thoreau’s fundamental ideologies included his belief that in order to live a good life people needed live in nature, freeing themselves of everything except the necessities. This fundamental transcendental idea, one that was discussed extensively by Ralph Waldo Emerson and

The philosophy of Transcendentalism, according to the article “Transcendentalism, An American Philosophy” is believed to have been created and led by Ralph Waldo Emerson, which is why he is considered by many literary scholars and historians to be the father of Transcendentalism. Throughout the years, this philosophy attracted other artists and thinkers such as the American Romantic novelist Henry David Thoreau. These prominent and poetic individuals created an insight for this movement, believing in the true and significant values of individualism, minimalism, and spirituality in their lives. These specific aspects can be found in Thoreau’s most famous work, and Transcendentalist staple, Walden. This novel was a reminiscence of his life

Renowned poets and philosophers Walt Whitman and Henry David Thoreau, although being from different schools of thought, actually shared many of the same views about nature and mankind’s role in society. Whitman, being more of a ‘romantic’ poet, praised nature’s beauty and majestic qualities. Thoreau, on the other hand, was more of a Transcendentalist; The Transcendentalism school of thought emphasized individualism as a common theme and celebrated the ‘self’ as a separate, but equal, counterpart to the nature of our environment. While both of these poets had their opinions on the landscape around us, they were quite similar in their beliefs about mankind’s existence and skirted the line between both schools of thought.

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

Thoreau is a hugely influential character in the history of America, helping to define American thought and continue to inspire our modern ideas and authors. “Countless contemporary nature

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.

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