Henry David Thoreau

American Romanticism:  Transcendentalists

Excerpt from Walden, Henry David Thoreau.  (Elements of Literature, pp. 217-228):

“Economy”

1. What questions do Thoreau’s friends and neighbors ask him about his decision to spend two years living on his own at Walden Pond?

2. Where does Thoreau get the lumber and frame for his cabin?

3. How much did Thoreau estimate his cabin cost?  Why do you think he pays so much attention to the cost of his supplies and materials?

“Where I Lived and What I Lived For”

1. Why does Thoreau say he went to live in the woods?

2. What do you think is Thoreau’s complaint about the railroads?  What form of modern technology might some people complain about today for the same reasons Thoreau complained about the effect of modern technology on people during his time?

“Brute Neighbors”

1. Define the word brute.

2. Describe the ant war.  To what human action does Thoreau compare the ant war?

3. List two interesting observations Thoreau makes about the loons on Walden Pond.

Romanticism:  According to the introduction, transcendentalists looked to nature to find truth and the doorway to spirituality and believed in the perfectibility of human nature.  Their American Dream included the values of individualism and nature/environmentalism.  Is Thoreau a transcendentalist?  Why or why not?  Find at least three specific passages from Walden to back up your opinion.