Jessie+Thoreau

Created by: Jessie Parfait Hello. Allow to introduce myself. My name is **Henry David Thoreau**, a famously known transcendentalist and author. Now I know this is not my real picture but while I am visiting the 21 st century I thought I could be myself and have a little fun without the people of my past mocking me for being different. I was born on July 12, 1817, in Concord, Massachusetts and have lived there for most of my years. I attended Harvard University where I studied classics and natural history. Once I graduated at age twenty, I returned to Concord and taught school for some years. From 1841 to 1843, I lived in the home of the American essayist and transcendental philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson, where I met other American transcendentalists. A couple of years later I moved to a crude hut on the shores of Walden Pond, a small body of water on the outskirts of Concord. I lived there until 1847, then resided again with Emerson during 1847 to 1848; and I think I’ll mention that I also became passionately involved in the abolitionist movement but I’m not going to discuss any more of that. **__What Happened To My Reputation__** During my entire lifetime I only published two books, which sold poorly. After my death on May 6, 1862, for some odd reason my reputation had grown tremendously. Apparently my observations about nature, the importance of the individual, and the simple values of life are becoming more and more relevant today. This may be because of your environmental abuses multiplying, the pressure to conform increases, and the pace of peoples’ lives are speeding up.
 * __A Little Bit About Myself (1817-1862)__**

__**My Works:**__ Civil Disobedience Walden __**My 2 Years Spent At Walden Pond**__ From March 1845 to September 1847, I spent a two-year period at Walden Pond. I did this because I felt a need to confirm my unity with nature. On July 4, 1845, I began my experiment in what I thought as “essential” living, or living a simple life. After I built myself a small cabin, I supported myself by doing “odd jobs”, such as gardening, carpentry, and land surveying. The major portion of my time was devoted to the study of nature by writing in my journals and practicing mediation.

Just from doing this two-year experiment, I learned more than I could have ever imagined. If I had not gotten away from civilization I probably wouldn’t have ever fully understood the meaning of “Self-Reliance”. __Other Links If You Feel You Want To Learn More:__ [|Waldon Quick Info] [|Thoreau's book on Walden]

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