Walden and Other Writings

"From July 4, 1845 to September 6, 1847 Henry David Thoreau lived alone in the cabin he built on the shores of Walden Pond, near Concord, Massachusetts. Walden is the classic account of his stay--his experiment in essential living. This book is framed as a narrative of the cycle of one year, beginning with summer. Thoreau uses the changes of the day, the seasons, and the year to symbolize the quiet revolution that is going on inside him. His specific observations of the natural life outside himself cause him to look inward and reflect upon the lives of quiet desperation most men lead; the erroneous economic thinking which leads them to accept their shackles; the liberating effects of nature and self-examination; and finally those "higher laws" which can only be glimpsed on those rare occasions when true living unites with true reflection. ALthough his values and principles were largely ignored in his own time, today's reader had come to recognize their importance and vitality. This edition also includes his essays on "Civil Disobedience," "Slavery in Massachusetts," "A plea for Captain John Brown," and "Life without principle."