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Leah Sanson
November 7, 2015
American Romanticism
Dr. Robinson
Henry David Thoreau: The Modern Father Nature
While Walden Pond may just seem like an ordinary pond, for Henry David Thoreau it
was a mind-altering location. This pond gave him the thoughts and inspiration to create his
work, Walden. Thoreau shared the same affinity for nature as previous authors but explored
these ideas further by doing what no one else did by living secluded on Walden Pond. While
authors like Ralph Waldo Emerson and Walt Whitman conveyed some of the same ideas, none
went as far as Thoreau did by living on Walden Pond. Walden is one of Thoreaus more
famous works that takes what he learned on Walden Pond and gives philosophical advice to
his audience about this particular experience and living life with greater meaning. Thoreaus
mastery of rhetorical techniques along with his powerful ability to appeal to the common
audience is what creates this to be the breathtaking work that it is. Repetition and the
continuation of themes throughout all the different sections of Walden embed his ideas in
the readers minds. Thoreaus continued use of italics brings emphasis to critical concepts
while his transitions from an everyday observation to a philosophical idea gain the
understanding and acceptance of the common American.
Thoreau, his writing, and his ideas are similar to those intellectual minds that preceded
him. In particular, Thoreau is similar to Ralph Waldo Emerson because of their shared belief
that men can be greater than what they are confined to society as of now and shared
appreciation for nature. Both can be seen speaking highly and writing in awe of what is found

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around them. Emerson states, The cool night bathes the world as with a river, and prepares
his eyes again for the crimson dawn (107). This shows the awe that he has for nature with
the grand descriptions that he creates and he even shows the image of the dawn, which is very
crucial in Thoreaus Walden. In relation to the intellect of man, both of these authors
believe that man should strive for those greater than they are expected to reach. Emerson
states in his essay, Divinity School Address, And to this end, let us not aim at common
degrees of merit (Emerson 124). While Thoreau has similar ideas in his first chapter of
Walden when he expresses, The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation (8). Both
feel that man should aim higher than expected and this is where they will grow intellectually.
Emerson even wrote Thoreau a piece for his death because he thought he was such a profound
writer.
Thoreau can also be compared to his predecessor Walt Whitman. Whitman, most
known for his work Song of Myself, emphasized the importance of virtue and that can be
seen in Walden as well. Both Whitman and Thoreau emphasize some of the same ideals for
men. One of Thoreaus ideals that he opens his essay Walden with is the concept that man
is trying so hard to conform to societys expectations that he does not have the ability to reach
his true intellectual depths. He states, Most menare so occupied with the factitious cares
and superfluously coarse labors of life that its finer fruits cannot be plucked by them
(Thoreau 7). Whitman has the same ideas when he states in the first line of his poem Song
of Myself, I celebrate myself (Whitman 1). Both of these intellects believe that men
should not be limited by society. They are optimistic of their society and thought they could
change that for the better. These inspiring writers struck awe within their audiences and
called on them to live fuller lives. Both also felt they wanted to escape society and become

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one with nature. Throughout Walden, Thoreau emphasized being one with nature and
learning great lessons from the wonders around him. Whitman has the same thoughts
especially when he states, I am enamourd of growing out-doors/ Men that live among cattle
or taste the ocean or woods (255-256). While Thoreau is the one that attempted this idea by
living on Walden Pond, both of these authors lived very simplistic lives.
Walden is much more than just an essay about Thoreaus time living on Walden
Pond. This is a work of art that examines American living through the pure eyes of a writer
that is becoming one with nature and living the simplistic and meaningful life that was meant
to be lived. Throughout this essay, Thoreau dives into ideas of moral philosophy and provides
a critique of the American life. He states in just the first chapter, Economy, in Walden,
The mass of men lead quiet lives of desperation (Thoreau 8). This is an important line
because of the significance that it holds within this work. This is significant because this is
one line that exemplifies the philosophical tone throughout this rest of his work. He chooses
to use such a harsh word as desperation to show the sad reality of the lives of American men.
He also in this chapter sets the scene for the rest of his essay when he argues that man is not
reaching his true intellectual depths. He states, He [man] has no time to be anything but a
machine (Thoreau 7). For the rest of the sections, Thoreau spends time opening the eyes of
his audience to the great wonders of nature and life that they are not seeing and inspires them
to live their lives fuller than just getting a job and following the path society has set before
them.
Thoreaus ideas are engraved in the readers minds because of his mastery of certain
techniques like repetition and his continuation of themes throughout the entirety of Walden.
Thoreaus mastery of repetition causes his ideas to stand out even more and be remembered

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by the audience of Walden. He states in one section of Walden, simplicity, simplicity,
simplicity! (65). As this is a more obvious form of repetition, it still gets the point across and
creates a tone of immediacy. The readers are instantly drawn to lines such as these. Besides
just the repetition of words and phrases, Thoreau continues the motif of morning and sunrise
throughout this entire essay; he even ends his last section with the image, Only that day
dawns to which we are awake. There is more day to dawn. The sun is just a morning star
(Thoreau 224). This idea of morning is so important to Thoreau because it emphasizes his
main purpose of awakening his audience. The repetition of morning shows the waking up
that the readers must do in order to live a fuller life. This theme can also be seen when the
author expresses, Let us rise early and fast (Thoreau 69). The continuation of this theme
also connects all the different chapters of Walden together even though the chapters have
different subjects. This image of sunrise runs like a strong current throughout this essay. The
unity that is now present in the entire essay allows the readers to follow the flow of the essay
with ease. Thoreau connects this literal motif to a more spiritual one when he states, Morning
is when I am awake and there is a dawn in me (Thoreau 64). This connects the motif to his
main purpose of this work; which is to wake up the American public. There is quite a bit of
emphasis that is placed on his ideas through repetition but he also uses italics to draw
attention to more important topics as well.
Italics create emphasis in a work and when Thoreau is not using italics to signify a
foreign word or a proper name, he uses italics to create emphasis on certain passages that best
contain his overall meaning of fulfilling a more meaningful life. Italics can be seen in
Walden when Thoreau is clarifying and bringing attention of a certain subject to his
audience. He state in the first chapter of Walden, All men want, not something to do with,

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but something to do, or rather something to be. (Thoreau 19). The reader focuses in on the
italicized parts of the sentences and is drawn to the idea that Thoreau is conveying; you must
be someone rather than just do something. This ties back into his philosophical ideas that are
conveyed throughout this essay, he wants Americans to lead more meaningful lives. He also
uses italics more, even stating, go to tinkering upon our lives to improve them (Thoreau 66).
Here, emphasizing lives and them show the importance of improving the audiences lives for
the better from their current state.
What makes Thoreaus work so relatable and accepted by many is his ability to create
a connection with his readers. This relationship is created by his use of clever analogies that
compare one instance or scenario that a man would be familiar with and connects this to a
philosophical idea that inspires the reader about human nature. One of Thoreaus strongest
analogies comes from his chapter Brute Neighbors. This is a longer analogy that starts with
Thoreaus observation of two ants fighting by a woodpile near his cottage. This is later
compared, after a long description and analysis of the incident, to human warfare. Thoreau
comes to the conclusion that the ants are just as violent as human fighters and it seems almost
human nature to fight. He also scatters smaller analogies throughout this work that have the
same impact. He states in Spring, Why is it that a bucket of water soon becomes putrid,
but frozen remains sweet forever? It is commonly said that this is the difference between the
affections and the intellect (Thoreau 200). Intellect is explained to hold longer than the
affections that can change from day to day. Other than just the strong comparisons, Thoreau
becomes one with his audience when he uses pronouns such as we. He states we are for
the most part more lonely when we go abroad men than when we stay in our chambers
(Thoreau 95). Thoreaus use of an inclusive pronoun allows the readers to relate better to

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Thoreaus ideas. He even engages his readers when he uses these pronouns along with a
rhetorical question, Why should we live with such hurry and waste of life? (Thoreau 66).
Both the transitions from everyday observations to a philosophical idea and his use of
inclusive pronouns immerse the reader into Walden.
From statistics to analogies, Walden contains it all. Thoreau wrote a masterpiece
that echoed the ideas of the prominent authors that came before him like Emerson and
Whitman. Thoreau creates such a successful and memorable piece of literature by using
rhetorical devices that aid in emphasizing his ideals. Also, he appeals to his target audience,
the average American man, by relating his ideas to the public and creating easily understood
analogies and using inclusive pronouns like we. His ideas are highlighted by the use of
repetition and continuation of themes along with italics and clever analogies.

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Works Cited
Emerson, Ralph Waldo. An Address Delivered Before the Senior Class in Divinity College,
Cambridge. Ralph Waldo Emerson Selected Essays. Ed. Ziff, Larzer. New York:
Viking Penguin Inc. 1982. 107-127. Print.
Thoreau, Henry David. Walden. Walden, Civil Disobedience, and Other Writings. Ed.
William Rossi. New York: W.W. Norton & Company. 2008. 5-224. Print.
Whitman, Walt. Song of Myself Leaves of Grass. Ed. Michael Moon. New York: W.W.
Norton & Company, Inc. 2002. 26-78. Print.