Thoreau's Commodity And Economy: A Comparative Analysis

Emerson and Thoreau have very similar ideas but the main difference between the two is that Emerson is the idea whereas Thoreau puts the idea into action. One example of the differences between these two men is in Emerson’s “Commodity” and Walden’s “Economy.” Emerson discusses how many men focus their entire lives on selling and buying to gain more money, and how every “progress” is for the purpose of selling more. He explains this in a way that shows how when a man’s life is taken up solely by work and money that it is no longer a life. Emerson says that to truly live one must not focus on working but on living a meaningful life. Thoreau took this idea and put it into action. Thoreau went into the woods and lived, he only worked for around six weeks a year, thus not focusing his life on work. Thoreau also did not buy and accumulate needless items with which to show his worth.
Another main difference between Emerson and Thoreau is their different view on the problem of money, Emerson focuses more on the fact that men feel forced to constantly work while Thoreau focuses on the fact that men feel obligated to continuously buy and “upgrade” themselves and their property so they appear more important to those around