Walden, Vol. 1 of 2 (Classic Reprint)

Henry D. Thoreau

Children's Books

Forgotten Books

It was his friend Ralph Waldo Emerson, another inveterate journal keeper, who urged Thoreau to keep a record of his thoughts and observations. Begun in 1837, Thoreau’s journal spans a period of twenty-five years and runs to more than two million words, coming to a halt only in 1861, shortly before the author’s death. The handwritten journal had somewhat humble origins, but as it grew in scope and ambition it came to function as a record of Thoreau’s interior life as well as the source for his books and essays. Indeed, it became the central concern of the author’s literary life. Critics now recognize Thoreau’s journal as an important artistic achievement in its own right.
Making selections from the entirety of the journal, Cramer presents all aspects of Thoreau: writer, thinker, naturalist, social reformer, neighbor, friend. No other single-volume edition offers such a full picture of Thoreau’s life and work. Cramer’s annotations add to the reader’s enjoyment and understanding. He provides notes on the biographical, historical, and geographical contexts of Thoreau’s life. The relation between Journal passages and the texts of works published in the author’s lifetime receive special emphasis. A companion to Walden: A Fully Annotated Edition, this gift edition of the Journal will be dipped into and treasured, and it makes a welcome addition to any book lover’s library.

I to Myself: An Annotated Selection from the Journal of Henry D. Thoreau

Biographies & Memoirs

Arts & Literature

Yale University Press

The Maine Woods, Thoreau’s best-known book after Walden, is now available for the first time in a lavishly produced, fully annotated gift-book edition “On the 31st of August, 1846, I left Concord in Massachusetts for Bangor and the backwoods of Maine”—thus begins The Maine Woods, the evocative story of Thoreau’s journeys through a familiar yet untouched land.
As he explores Mt. Katahdin (an Indian word meaning “highest land”), Lake Chesuncook, the Allagash River, and the East Branch of the Penobscot, Thoreau muses on his own vulnerability and the humility engendered by his solitude in the wilderness. Throughout Thoreau invokes the forest of Maine—the mountains, waterways, fauna, flora, and the people—in his singular style. Echoing Walden, Thoreau’s passionate outcry against the degradation of the environment in The Maine Woods will resonate strongly today.
This fully annotated gift edition of The Maine Woods makes a wonderful companion volume to Walden: A Fully Annotated Edition and I to Myself: An Annotated Selection from the Journal of Henry D. Thoreau.

The Maine Woods: A Fully Annotated Edition

Literature & Fiction

Essays & Correspondence

This new selection of Thoreau’s essays traces his trajectory as a writer for the outlets of his day—the periodical press, newspapers, and compendiums—and as a frequent presenter on the local lecture circuit. By arranging the writings chronologically, the volume re-creates the experience of Thoreau’s readers as they followed his developing ideas over time.
Jeffrey S. Cramer, award-winning editor of six previous volumes of works by Thoreau, offers the most accurate text available for each essay and provides convenient on-page annotations. He establishes context and guides the reader through unfamiliar allusions and references, plumbing the depths of Thoreau’s writings with unprecedented insight.
Among the essays in this book: · The Last Days of John Brown · Resistance to Civil Government [Civil Disobedience] · Thomas Carlyle and His Works · Natural History of Massachusetts · and many more

Essays: A Fully Annotated Edition

United States

Thoreau's Walden, ostensibly a simple account of a year spent alone in a cabin by a pond in the woods, is one of the most influential and complex books in American literature. After eight years in the writing,the first edition of 1854 was largely ignored, and it was not reprinted until 1862, the year of Thoreau's death. But by 1900 Walden was acclaimed by many as a classic, among the finest prose works of the century. It has been increasingly recognized as an important document of social criticism and dissent. It has been seen as a religious testament, with a kinship to oriental mysticism. It has been described as a mythic book,and it has been used as a Freudian key to the mind of its iconoclastic author. Thoreau's words have become increasingly significant in modern times. Anticipating the evils of modern society and the problems of modern man, Walden's meanings seem more relevant every day.

Walden (The Writings of Henry D. Thoreau)

History

Americas

Princeton University Press

"On the Duty of Civil Disobedience," written by legendary author and philosopher Henry David Thoreau, is widely considered to be one of the top essays of all time. This great classic, which argues that people should not permit governments to over-rule will surely attract a whole new generation of readers. For many, "On the Duty of Civil Disobedience" is required reading for various courses and curriculums. And for others who simply enjoy reading timeless pieces of classic literature, this text by Henry David Thoreau is highly recommended. Originally published in 1849 as "Resistance to Civil Government," "On the Duty of Civil Disobedience" was written to advocate public resistance to the laws and acts of government that Henry David Thoreau considered to be unjust. The practical application of "Civil Disobedience" was largely ignored until the twentieth century when, at different times, Modanda Ghandi, Martin Luther King, Jr. and anti-Vietnam War activists applied Thoreau's principles.

Henry David Thoreau: on the Duty of Civil Disobedience

CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform

Civil Disobedience is one of the most importance works of philosophy ever written. Like all great works of philosophy, it is as relevant today as it has ever been, as it transcends space and time. Don't let the abolitionist nature mislead you: this book is not merely about abolition and slavery. Rather, it is about Man Against the State, individuality, and Thoreau's philosophy of how one man can stand up to government and society, driven by his own convictions of right and wrong, as summarized by the timeless quote "Any man more right than his neighbors constitutes a majority of one already". Thoreau's main point is that the best - and many times, the only - method for fighting injustice is through passive disobedience. By refusing to cooperate with the machinery of injustice, the individual can become the friction that stops the machine. Active resistance is bound for failure, as the machine (the State, society, etc.) is too formidable for the individual to fight. But, by refusing to cooperate, justice can be achieved and injustice toppled. If you are looking for a marvelous primer on individuality and the fight for justice, start with this book.

Civil Disobedience

This volume cleverly combines Emerson's Nature with Thoreau's Walking in a single, affordable paperback. Though written nearly 30 years apart (1836 and 1862, respectively), the two works express similar feelings and make perfect companions, by defining the distinctly American relationship to nature. The spirituality of Emerson's "Nature" is a perfect complement to the deep philosophical naturalism of Thoreau's work. Written by two of the pillars of transcendentalism, the essays in Nature and Walking will lead readers to contemplate why the y appreciate nature and the simple pleasures of walking with no destination in mind. Thou Emerson’s Nature is not as easy to read as Thoreau’s Walking, Emerson’s thoughts are also truly amazing.

Nature and Walking

Ralph Emerson

The two best essays by Henry David Thoreau: Walden and Civil Disobedience, which is also known as "Resistance to Civil Government" and "On the Duty of Civil Disobedience." Enjoy Walden by Henry David Thoreau and Civil Disobedience by Henry David Thoreau today!

Walden and Civil Disobedience

I wish to speak a word for Nature, for absolute freedom and wildness, as contrasted with a freedom and culture merely civil—to regard man as an inhabitant, or a part and parcel of Nature, rather than a member of society. I wish to make an extreme statement, if so I may make an emphatic one, for there are enough champions of civilization: the minister and the school committee and every one of you will take care of that.  I have met with but one or two persons in the course of my life who understood the art of Walking, that is, of taking walks—who had a genius, so to speak, for SAUNTERING, which word is beautifully derived "from idle people who roved about the country, in the Middle Ages, and asked charity, under pretense of going a la Sainte Terre," to the Holy Land, till the children exclaimed, "There goes a Sainte-Terrer," a Saunterer, a Holy-Lander. They who never go to the Holy Land in their walks, as they pretend, are indeed mere idlers and vagabonds; but they who do go there are saunterers in the good sense, such as I mean. Some, however, would derive the word from sans terre without land or a home, which, therefore, in the good sense, will mean, having no particular home, but equally at home everywhere. For this is the secret of successful sauntering. He who sits still in a house all the time may be the greatest vagrant of all; but the saunterer, in the good sense, is no more vagrant than the meandering river, which is all the while sedulously seeking the shortest course to the sea. But I prefer the first, which, indeed, is the most probable derivation. For every walk is a sort of crusade, preached by some Peter the Hermit in us, to go forth and reconquer this Holy Land from the hands of the Infidels.

Walking

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Books by Henry D. Thoreau