“There is an
incessant influx of novelty into the world, and yet we tolerate incredible dulness.”
If there was ever a man who demonstrated any truth behind
these words, it was their penman, Henry David Thoreau. He substantiates a
powerful development of self-awareness and independence in, Walden, and frequently argues in favor
of living a life not in need of material possessions. His arguments solidify his
position against the common desires of most men and women; those interested in
the improvement of luxury goods rather than the improvement of their own
character. One could argue Thoreau’s ability to live luxuriously came through
inner self-investment. He writes on numerous occasions about the
importance of one’s ability to manage on one’s own—a problem most are
incapable of doing, which Thoreau describes as doing simply because one can. He
questions the desire for building larger houses with more material goods and
providing telegram lines from Boston to Texas, and finally asks, ”Would it not
better if man lived more simply?”
As the narrative moves forward, Thoreau explains his two
years at the lake through the evolution of the four seasons. He juts out on
nearly unrivaled accounts of his surrounding habitat offering a flawless depictions of nature's bounty—nature writing only the likes of Aldo Leopold’s, Sand County Almanac, has matched. He
gave an ant war the qualities of an entire Greek army at battle in one account,
and equates the buzz of a mosquito to a trumpet blast in another. All the while, he maintains a highly
critical outlook on the human condition and man’s lack of awareness for, what
he argues, are the most fundamental, satisfying experiences life has to offer.
FAVORITE QUOTES
“Our inventions are
wont to be pretty toys, which distract our attention from serious things.”
“For what are the
classics but the noblest recorded thoughts of man?”
“Why should we be in
such desperate haste to succeed and in such desperate enterprises?”
“Rather than love,
than money, than fame, give me truth.”
B.-
