Sign in with FacebookMister Jones's Reviews > Walden
Walden
by Henry David Thoreau
by Henry David Thoreau
The very first time I read Walden my immediate response was to begin torching its pages one by one and sacrificing each page as literary cow paddies written by a pompous celibate pretentious boob who masqueraded as self-appointed demigogue for the collective conscience of the gods; and of course, when read this way it certainly fits at times Thoreau's rhetoric.
Many years later, I took my paperback copy off my shelf and was ready to pack it up to be dropped off at the nearest thrift shop, but then as I sat on my floor with my fat old textbooks and other worn clothing ready for donation. I begin reading Walden again, and there's just something about it that resonates from another time, another place, and another writer.
Thoreau's conceit can certainly be provocative, but I think he wants that to be exactly the case for his readers; he's mourning the interaction of souls as modernity encroaches upon both the physical landscape and the landscape of the mind.
Living in the woods, facing himself and nature on a equal foothold can be a daunting task, but Thoreau writes about it and makes it so much a part of himself. He wants to be heard within the deepest regions of our souls. Walden is a spiritual work about our world and ourselves, and our failure to connect the two.
At least Thoreau tried, and Walden shines in that attempt.
Many years later, I took my paperback copy off my shelf and was ready to pack it up to be dropped off at the nearest thrift shop, but then as I sat on my floor with my fat old textbooks and other worn clothing ready for donation. I begin reading Walden again, and there's just something about it that resonates from another time, another place, and another writer.
Thoreau's conceit can certainly be provocative, but I think he wants that to be exactly the case for his readers; he's mourning the interaction of souls as modernity encroaches upon both the physical landscape and the landscape of the mind.
Living in the woods, facing himself and nature on a equal foothold can be a daunting task, but Thoreau writes about it and makes it so much a part of himself. He wants to be heard within the deepest regions of our souls. Walden is a spiritual work about our world and ourselves, and our failure to connect the two.
At least Thoreau tried, and Walden shines in that attempt.
Sign into Goodreads to see if any of your friends have read Walden.
sign in »
Quotes Mister Jones Liked
“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.”
― Henry David Thoreau, Walden: Or, Life in the Woods
― Henry David Thoreau, Walden: Or, Life in the Woods
Comments (showing 1-3 of 3) (3 new)
date
newest »
newest »
message 1:
by
Cliff
(new)
06. Mai, 12:26 Uhr
Well put! I have similarly conflicted feelings about this work, although as I watch many of my "artistic" friends and family age, I am more sympathetic to Thoreaus's mooching, hypocrisy, and fundamental idealism. Perhaps not practical for most of us, but Walden is at least a beautiful escape from the world of 4-dollar gas and global warming.
reply
|
flag
*
Great review, friend: I agree that it's too easy to pass Thoreau off as an utterly pompous blowhard. I was lucky enough to first read the book by listening to an audio recording with a narrator who emphasized Thoreau as being light-hearted, humorous, and even self-depreciating. I think it's the sort of book that simply had to be written, sooner or later, and Thoreau just happened to do the job.
