As one of the most prominent figures of the transcendentalist movement, Henry David Thoreau captures the heart of transcendentalism in his writing. His memoir Walden is the epitome of transcendentalist writing. At the time, transcendentalism relied on contemplation and philosophy, emphasizing “non-rational, intuitive feeling” (American Transcendentalism). Individuals who believed in transcendentalism were often recluses, or at least solitary in their lives. Transcendentalists focused on themselves, cultivating their thoughts and ideas in peaceful settings, which caused many Transcendentalists to wish to “return to nature,” where society and materialism could not reach them (American Transcendentalism). This is evident in Henry David Thoreau’s own life: Thoreau left society for two years to live in nature, near Walden Pond. Thoreau “sought to live the Transcendental life to its fullest potential,” living deliberately and thinking carefully with only nature for company (Transcendentalism). His resulting work, Walden, highlights the essentials of Transcendentalism: the purity of nature compared to society, intuitive thinking and philosophy, and solitude and individualism.
The book itself is one of many themes and topics: Thoreau discusses nature and the animals around the Walden pond, the flaws of modern society, and philosophy in regards to solitude and the world.
In the first and longest chapter, Economy, Thoreau claims that in modern societies workers are always suffering. A worker works until he becomes a machine and cannot enjoy the finer things in life. Thoreau highlights subjects such as history, poetry, and mythology to show that there is more than just work to be experienced.
Thoreau alludes to the hierarchy of needs, arguing that if man has ample “food, shelter, clothing, and fuel,” he should not need “more warmth of the same kind… more and richer food,” and more of the same basic needs he already has (Thoreau 13). Man should then move up the hierarchy, towards more intellectual and spiritual levels. In these philosophical claims, Thoreau also intersperses descriptions of his own shelter at the Walden pond: the shanty he lived in, the woods surrounding him, the materials he bought.
In the rest of Walden, Thoreau covers several topics related to each chapter. Thoreau discusses how he lives simply, but deliberately, constantly aware of his surroundings and himself. As a student, Thoreau emphasizes the timelessness and importance of knowledge, specifically the lack of access to many colleges for students.
Surrounding Walden pond are a variety of animals and plants that Thoreau carefully records and describes. The isolation of the pond and Thoreau’s descriptions of the plants that he has grown make it seem as though he has his own world. He explains that he has no more burdens or sadness, and contemplates the meaning of closeness and solitude.
Furthermore, Thoreau claims that the serenity of nature creates an environment conducive to thought and reflection. He discusses the balance between his philosophic thoughts and his more primitive thoughts, his innate desire to live in the wild and to sit and watch the world.
Walden’s various topics are all linked together with common themes. Thoreau emphasizes the importance of living deliberately and living life to the fullest; he thinks that people should work, but should not lose themselves to work; people are all innately students, who should strive to think critically, learn, and educate themselves; society makes it easy for people to conform, but sometimes, when appropriate, breaking tradition can be beneficial; human life consists of a balance between basic needs or instincts and higher callings or spiritual thoughts; no matter the circumstances, people are always given new opportunities and life should be valued as something precious. Here are four of the most memorable quotes from Walden for me:
I.
I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived. I did not wish to live what was not life, living is so dear; nor did I wish to practise resignation, unless it was quite necessary. I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life, to live so sturdily and Spartan-like as to put to rout all that was not life, to cut a broad swath and shave close, to drive life into a corner, and reduce it to its lowest terms, and, if it proved to be mean, why then to get the whole and genuine meanness of it, and publish its meanness to the world; or if it were sublime, to know it by experience, and be able to give a true account of it in my next excursion. (87)
For the first time in Walden, Thoreau begins discussing the reason why he came to Walden Pond. He claims to want to live “deliberately,” leaving behind materialism and any chains from society (87). Thoreau wants to live “deep” and deliberate, which is reminiscent of earlier chapters when he claims that workers have fallen into easy paths, working mindlessly, without thinking. This quote captures the essence of one of Thoreau’s messages in Walden: that life should be lived to its fullest, without barriers like materialistic greeds or society’s standards; this is why Thoreau leaves society in the first place, to strip himself of the chains -- in this case, an abundance of things he does not need -- that hold him back from finding deeper meaning in life.
Earlier in this passage, Thoreau explains why waking up early can be beneficial. He believes that “to be awake is to be alive,” and that people “must learn to reawaken and keep [them]selves awake” (87), which may apply to waking up at dawn but also applies to living life. Thoreau criticizes workers and society in the previous chapter, claiming that workers have lost their grip on the finer things in life because they are too caught up in work. To counter this, Thoreau believes that living should constitute of self-discovery and thought. And to properly achieve self-discovery and thought, the other aspects of life that are not necessary must be stripped away, revealing an individual without ornamentation.
II.
This whole earth which we inhabit is but a point in space. How far apart, think you, dwell the two most distant inhabitants of yonder star, the breadth of whose disk cannot be appreciated by our instruments? Why should I feel lonely? Is not our planet in the Milky Way? This which you put seems to me not to be the most important question. What sort of space is that which separates a man from his fellows and makes him solitary? I have found that no exertion of the legs can bring two minds much nearer to one another. (130)
A major theme of Transcendentalism is isolation. Although Thoreau lives mostly in solitude in Walden, he never claims to be lonely. Many ask Thoreau whether or not he becomes lonely alone in the woods, and to this he answers by ruminating on the definition of being lonely. Even though he lives without company, Thoreau claims that such distance is relative. For instance, he thinks that earth “is but a point in space” (130), and since Earth is in the Milky Way, surrounded by other planets and stars and galaxies, he should have no reason to ever feel lonely. The distance between such bodies still is immeasurable by most scientific instruments anyway. Furthermore, Thoreau questions the meaning of solitude, asking what kind of space “separates a man from his fellows and makes him solitary” (130). To answer this, Thoreau claims that there is no correlation between physical proximity and company; even though people live close together, they can still be lonely.
And so to answer the question initially posed to him, Thoreau concludes that such space between individuals is all relative, and that, even if two people are physically close to one another, they may not be emotionally or mentally connected.
III.
Let the thunder rumble; what if it threaten ruin to farmers’ crops? that is not its errand to thee. Take shelter under the cloud, while they flee to carts and sheds. Let not to get a living be thy trade, but thy sport. Enjoy the land, but own it not. Though want of enterprise and faith men are where they are, buying and selling, and spending their lives like serfs. (202)
From the first chapter of Walden, Thoreau makes his stance on work and overworking clear: if an individual works too hard and loses sight of other things in life, that individual no longer enjoys life, and no longer has the opportunity to enjoy the finer things in life, such as literature or philosophy. This quote is the summation of what Thoreau believes life should be: a balance between work and self-fulfillment; work, but only enough to live. If individuals work too much, they become slaves to their work, without control of their lives, slaves to the economy and materialism. Man becomes machine, unable to enjoy softer things, since “the finest qualities of [human] nature… can be preserved only by the most delicate handling” (4).
This train of thought is not dissimilar from other Transcendentalist authors; in fact, in his speech The American Scholar, Ralph Waldo Emerson observes how a man working “sinks into the [role of] the farmer,” thinking of nothing but work, falling into an easy path, his soul becoming “subject to dollars.” Thoreau aptly claims that, in these scenarios, society “do[es] not ride on the railroad; it rides upon [society]” (89).
Both this memorable quote and this theme highlight one of the fundamentals of Transcendentalism.
IV.
[The eagle] mount[ed] again and again with its strange chuckle… repeat[ing] its free and beautiful fall, turning over and over like a kite, and then recovering from its lofty tumbling, as if it had never set its foot on terra firma. It appeared to have no companion in the universe -- sporting there alone -- and to need none but the morning and the ether with which it played. It was not lonely, but made all the earth lonely beneath it. (308)
Thoreau leaves his cabin one particular day and looks up in the sky to see an eagle soaring without worry. In a way, the eagle represents Thoreau, who has also left society and his world behind. But, as mentioned in earlier chapters, Thoreau does not feel lonely by himself; he claims that “no exertion of the legs can bring two minds much nearer to one another” (130). In his chosen solitude, Thoreau lives his own life and learns about the world around him without any care for company. In his books, in his thoughts, and in his gardening, Thoreau finds company, more valuable than human company could offer. The eagle as Thoreau shows how Thoreau has elevated himself -- through thought and meditation -- above some of his peers; Thoreau has reached a point in his life where he relishes his life, not just his work. His eagle plays with the “morning and the ether,” falling and twisting through the sky (308); in the same way, Thoreau plays with his philosophical thoughts and ideas, molding them into different shapes, which he translates onto paper. Like his eagle, by giving up materialistics desires, Thoreau is free from any worry, able to enjoy living his own life.
Works Cited
"Henry David Thoreau." Biography.com. A&E Networks Television, 02 Apr. 2014. Web. 05 Mar. 2017.
Lenat, Richard. "American Transcendentalism." American Transcendentalism. Web. 05 Mar. 2017.
Lewis, Jone. "The American Scholar." Ralph Waldo Emerson -- Texts. 09 Mar. 2009. Web. 05 Mar. 2017.
Thoreau, Henry David. Walden: Annotated and With an Introd. by Walter Harding. New York, Washington Square Press. 1967. Print.
"Trancendentalism." The Literature Network: Online classic literature, poems, and quotes. Essays & Summaries. Jalic Inc. Web. 05 Mar. 2017.
