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Furthermore, it is noteworthy that many of the views espoused by Thoreau within his works of literature were regarded with as much condescension, and perhaps outright disdain, as he seemingly regarded those pursuing the gold rush in the preceding quotation. For instance, it is known that of the 1,000 original copies that the author published of Walden, he was only able to sell approximately a third of it. To a certain extent, his commercial misgivings can be attributed to the lifestyle he advocated in that manuscript and in other works of literature such as "Life Without Principle." The following quotation from Nathaniel Hawthorne, who was a contemporary of Thoreau, illustrates the most common regard for the author and his views on living and the simplicity he embraced with nature. Hawthorne...
Some of these "regular" ways of earning a living, however, such as through the fortune and industry of another (such as that of Emerson or that of his family), were actually employed by Thoreau.
Therefore, it would not be too inaccurate to regard Thoreau as somewhat of a hypocrite for not being able to live up to the lofty standards he professed in "Life Without Principle." The truth of the matter is that a lot of his principles within this work (and others) was so ideal that it would have been difficult for anyone to strictly adhere to them.
Works Cited
Cheever, Susan. American Bloomsbury: Louisa May Alcott, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Margaret Fuller, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and Henry David Thoreau; Their Lives, Their Loves, Their Work. Detroit: Thorndike Press. 2006. Print.
Thoreau, Henry David. "Life Without Principle." The Thoreau Reader. 1854. Web. http://thoreau.eserver.org/lifewout.html
Borst, Raymond. The Thoreau Log: A Documentary Life of Henry David Thoreau, 1817 -- 1862. New York: G.K. Hall. 1992. Print.
Works Cited
Cheever, Susan. American Bloomsbury: Louisa May Alcott, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Margaret Fuller, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and Henry David Thoreau; Their Lives, Their Loves, Their Work. Detroit: Thorndike Press. 2006. Print.
Thoreau, Henry David. "Life Without Principle." The Thoreau Reader. 1854. Web. http://thoreau.eserver.org/lifewout.html
Borst, Raymond. The Thoreau Log: A Documentary Life of Henry David Thoreau, 1817 -- 1862. New York: G.K. Hall. 1992. Print.
Henry David Thoreau left us two most important options when things go very bad in this world: a bloodless but effective way of saying "no" and a fitting advice to rely on ourselves. He did this through his famous works, "Civil Disobedience" and "Walden." Civil Disobedience" is about showing protest by resisting the orders of the authority being opposed. When authority conflicts with one's true values, the person has the right
However, according to Thoreau, as modern connivances evolve, people become removed from nature. This removal from nature therefore causes people to not understand the importance of preserving it. Without preserving nature, people will loose their historic connection to nature and thus fail to truly understand their existence. To prevent this, Thoreau argues that everyone must learn the true art of walking. Walking is from the naturalist and transcendentalist genre of
Nowadays especially the influence of the media has become so invasive and widespread that all people seem to do is just discuss about whatever the media portrays the world as being. I also feel that the media has succeeded in "dumbing down" people's thoughts, so that they do not even bother discussing anymore about politics or current events unless they are forced to. Instead many people today occupy themselves
Thoreau and Locke acknowledge the right of the people to renounce their allegiance to their government, what is the difference between their understandings of this right and what different conditions would warrant such an act? When do citizens have the right to throw off the yoke of a sovereign and adopt a new form of governance that is more in keeping with the wishes and their needs of the majority
Resistance to Civil Government, or Civil Disobedience," with these words: heartily accept the motto, -- 'That government is best which governs least'; and I should like to see it acted up to more rapidly and systematically. Carried out, it finally amounts to this, which also I believe -- 'That government is best which governs not at all'; and when men are prepared for it, that will be the kind of
Journalize Literature Thoreau is thinking that reality as truly seen is forever new and more than words can say. So what do you think? Do we need contemplation or something like it in order to better understand who we are? Or should we be satisfied with Zweckrationalist (Weber) and go about setting and achieving measurable objectives in a calculable world? Henry David Thoreau was many things, philosopher, existentialist, and pioneer of the