Henry David Thoreau's Life And Accomplishments
Sarah Padilla
PHI 271
Mark Herr
9 September 2014
Henry David Thoreau
David Henry Thoreau was born on 12 July 1817 in Concord, Massachusetts, to John and Cynthia Dunbar Thoreau. He had two older siblings, Helen and John, and a younger sister, Sophia. The family then moved to Chelmsford in 1818, to Boston in 1821, and back to Concord in 1823. Thoreau had two educations in Concord. The first occurred through his explorations of the local environment, which were encouraged by his mother’s interest in nature. The second was his preparation at Concord Academy for study at Harvard University. He entered Harvard in 1833 and graduated in 1837 (Wikipedia). The year he graduated he began the journal that was a primary source for his lectures and published …show more content…
Henry David Thoreau, a Transcendentalist, believed that individuals should be self-reliant and live a simple life. He felt that people are conforming to prescribed norms and losing autonomy. Thoreau encouraged others to assert their individuality, each in his or her own way. He also believed that independent, well-considered action arose naturally from a questing attitude of mind. He was first and foremost an explorer, of both the world around him and the world within him. Henry Thoreau 's life can be described as two major accomplishments: he lived life on his own terms to a remarkable degree, and he wrote it all down. He is remembered for his philosophical and naturalist writings. Thoreau’s belief in acting on principles also gave him a practical attitude toward political violence and helped him make a persuasive case for peaceful revolution. He invested in a philosophy of life and praxis …show more content…
He criticizes public opinion because it robs people of the choice as to how they wish to be viewed. He says opinions hamper autonomy. Public opinion is a weak tyrant compared with our own private opinion. Thoreau says what a person thinks of himself is a better indicator of life 's outcome. This indicates the importance of a person 's opinion of himself rather than what others think. Thoreau expressed his belief in the power and, indeed, the obligation of the individual to determine right from wrong, independent of the dictates of society. “His thought is an early influence on green anarchism but with an emphasis on the individual experience of the natural world influencing later naturalist currents, simple living as a rejection of a materialistic lifestyle and self-sufficient were Thoreau 's goals” (Wikipedia). Thoreau did not speak of economics but merely the right of "disunion" from the state, and predict the gradual elimination of the state through social
PHI 271
Mark Herr
9 September 2014
Henry David Thoreau
David Henry Thoreau was born on 12 July 1817 in Concord, Massachusetts, to John and Cynthia Dunbar Thoreau. He had two older siblings, Helen and John, and a younger sister, Sophia. The family then moved to Chelmsford in 1818, to Boston in 1821, and back to Concord in 1823. Thoreau had two educations in Concord. The first occurred through his explorations of the local environment, which were encouraged by his mother’s interest in nature. The second was his preparation at Concord Academy for study at Harvard University. He entered Harvard in 1833 and graduated in 1837 (Wikipedia). The year he graduated he began the journal that was a primary source for his lectures and published …show more content…
Henry David Thoreau, a Transcendentalist, believed that individuals should be self-reliant and live a simple life. He felt that people are conforming to prescribed norms and losing autonomy. Thoreau encouraged others to assert their individuality, each in his or her own way. He also believed that independent, well-considered action arose naturally from a questing attitude of mind. He was first and foremost an explorer, of both the world around him and the world within him. Henry Thoreau 's life can be described as two major accomplishments: he lived life on his own terms to a remarkable degree, and he wrote it all down. He is remembered for his philosophical and naturalist writings. Thoreau’s belief in acting on principles also gave him a practical attitude toward political violence and helped him make a persuasive case for peaceful revolution. He invested in a philosophy of life and praxis …show more content…
He criticizes public opinion because it robs people of the choice as to how they wish to be viewed. He says opinions hamper autonomy. Public opinion is a weak tyrant compared with our own private opinion. Thoreau says what a person thinks of himself is a better indicator of life 's outcome. This indicates the importance of a person 's opinion of himself rather than what others think. Thoreau expressed his belief in the power and, indeed, the obligation of the individual to determine right from wrong, independent of the dictates of society. “His thought is an early influence on green anarchism but with an emphasis on the individual experience of the natural world influencing later naturalist currents, simple living as a rejection of a materialistic lifestyle and self-sufficient were Thoreau 's goals” (Wikipedia). Thoreau did not speak of economics but merely the right of "disunion" from the state, and predict the gradual elimination of the state through social