English: Thoreau’s Journals – Flashcards

Where I Lived and What I Lived For, Sound, Brute Neighbors, The Pond in Winter, Spring, Conclusion

Thoreau begins his essay with the overall scenery and creation of his wooden log cabin. He compares it to Mt. Olympus, and mentions how he took residence there on the fourth of July coincidentally. He describes basically how wondrous he believes the location of his log cabin to be. Then, Thoreau discusses why he was there at Walden; his purpose, his life. Thoreau wished to find the meaning of life there, in his cozy abode. Finally, the main point of his passage, with his opinions embedded in the essay, is made clear. Simplicity! The importance of a simple life, and how nowadays (nowadays being that time) people were too wrapped up in unnecessary things. He mentions how the nation was so consumed with its "efforts" (which he believed were unnecessary and wasteful) that it never really took the time to take a breathe and enjoy life and find meaning in it.

appreciation of nature, content, sarcastic at times, critical (of technology and society), somewhat reflective, simplicity

In describing his unfinished house, Thoreau said that leaving off the windows and doors gave it a clean and airy look that appeared beautiful in the morning. He mentions the simple fact that the wind can blow through his house. By the end of the paragraph, he connects this to his discussion of winds. He says that the winds blowing through his house connect him to nature. He want to live simply and in nature, and his basic, unfinished house allows him to connect to, and live, his life better. He says that the "gods" of nature can move through his house and that, "the broken strains, or celestial parts only, of terrestrial music" can flow through his house.

Living in the woods allowed Thoreau to truly experience live and learn the facts of life. Living in nature and with nature, without any other human influences, results in a peaceful interaction just between nature and the human being. It creates a situation of mutual existence, of survival and hope. He wanted to really live life with no worries, so he could focus on living in the moment and learning from it rather than regretting that he did not do this later on in his life. He wanted to experience life no matter what the cost might be for him. He was able to think more about his personal philosophies when he was alone in nature, and he was also always honest with both nature and himself because there was no one there to conform with or imitate.

Even though humans are believed to be more powerful than any other species, we still have our flaws and issues. These are mostly caused by our lives not being simple enough. He stresses simplicity in order to show that everyday life is being overcomplicated and causing more problems than it is worth.

He believed that simplicity is important because many times, people allow their lives to be "frittered away by detail". Simplicity also results in the truth, which can result in self-reliance and nonconformity. Simplicity aids people in pursuing goals and completing tasks. Overall, Transcendentalists believed in a simple life and connecting with the world around; truly experiencing the world and using self-reliance to do it.

The paradox is that Thoreau's passage centralizes on the main idea of simplicity and the idea of living a simple life. In the passage he also expresses the ways that his contemporaries believe technology can simplify life. He talks about how people feel that railroads, and other similar technology, are supposed to make life simpler. However, these conveniences also create a certain amount of difficulty. Rather than simplifying all aspects of life, they often complicate them. The user now has to adapt to the effort the technology requires of the user. Technologies intended to "simplify" life often do just the opposite.

Thoreau often spent mornings reflecting on life and its meaning. He concludes that such time is not wasted but well spent, and people should listen to and learn from the sounds of nature. He reflects on the passage of time and its unimportance, Puri Indian lack of words for days, and how others consider this idleness. He feels he has an advantage in life.

The tone is generally blissful, looking back at the experience with fondness of memory.

Thoreau feels that these hours allow him to learn from and enjoy the world around him, and improve his life.

The silent smile and occasional chuckle from Thoreau are a result of his taking time from his day to enjoy of nature.

During the Industrial Revolution most people were concerned with getting things done quickly leaving no time for Thoreau's "useless" idleness. The townspeople are slaves to the clock.

Observes two large ants fighting War between black and red ants Looking more closely reveals the whole battlefield Compares the ant war to an actual human war Before this, Thoreau has never been in or seen an actual war Each side had a musical "band" Saw a single red ant observing the war and compared him to Achilles The red ant plunged into battle and joined forces with another red ant to attack a black ant Picked up the leaf that the three ants were fighting on and took it inside to examine them with a microscope Struggled for half an hour more until the black ant beheaded the other two red ants After another half hour, the black ant was, although wounded, victorious Discovered the frivolousness of war

compares them to people and talking about losses and casualties

to make it more dramatic, help us understand the importance of this ant war, remember the battle as we remember the American Revolution

dramatic, heroic

by describing musical bands, comparing it to human battles

kind of like a fable, more of a personal touch, to describe the battle in more detail

when he looks at the ant war, he sees it as a trivial thing, which means that human war is trivial, he doesn't really know why they are fighting and who really was victorious because it's trivial

dramatic, insightful, satirical, observant, curious, ironic

references to Greek mythology, bottom of page 235 ("And certainly... bear a moment's comparison with this"), bottom of second column of page 236 ("I never learned... of the war"), brought three ants into his house, he also mocks the warriors by saying that they are fighting for no reason.

Thoreau wakes up with questions on his mind, but then the power of Nature answers them. Nature leads him out of his confusion and says "Forward!" He then admires nature from his home on the hill. Then, he starts his morning labors. He describes the pond as snowy and cold, covered with layers of hard ice. He states that the pond's ground is like heaven. Men come and go to the pond to fish and gather other resources. He describes the pond as a meeting point for the towns, which keeps them unified. Thoreau also talks about an expert fisherman who can catch fish even in the midst of the winter. He has learned the necessary tools to fish by needing to survive and through experience.

optimism, admiration

While sleeping, he feels that many questions have been clouding his mind "what — how — when — where?". He awoke to nature shining through his window as if to explain that he must not worry about these small things and to just keep moving forward with life because Nature will guide him to where he needs to be.

He says that what the average citizen learned in books and second-hand experiences, the fisherman learned on their own through personal experience, which is a lot more impressive and natural. The fisherman are experienced on how to cooperate with Nature. They have learned the tricks on how to fish in the winter and use what they need to their advantage, just as the citizen knows about how to make their own, man-made city work and be efficient.

While the citizen of the town probes nature, the naturalist dives in head first, immersing himself in its endeavors. Through experience, the fisherman knows how to work with Nature, and Nature works with the fisherman, while the trained naturalist does not know the wonders of nature, only what they have learned in books, and they try to put those lessons to the test. What they fail to see though is that Nature changes everyday, and it does not follow the rules of a mere book.

Overall theme of awakening The sheet of ice covering the pond is melting More sunlight, less sluggish darkness Geese and ducks are migrating back to Walden "serene and mild weather" As spring arrives, he is anticipating summer Observed everything, from the blanket of mist covering the pond to the plants that bloom The arrival of spring is a time of renewal

hopeful

The passage says the bare face of the pond is "full of glee and youth, as if it spoke the joy of this fishes within it". It then describes the sands on the shore as a "silvery sheen as from the scales of a leuciscus" (a small freshwater fish."

Emerson starts with speaking about how the ice is melting and seeing fish in the pond. Then later in the passage he speaks at length about the birds coming back from the south. He calls the tortoise and the frog "the heralds of the season", so when they return it means spring is on its way. Plants spring and bloom and he hears the robin singing.

The narrator announces that he is going to leave the woods because he has become trapped by routine He encourages readers to follow their dreams, love life, and live simply We should understand ourselves He believes that the poor are the most independent and live the best lives; they do not need money In order to enjoy life and find true calling, live a basic life live the simplest way you can

reminiscent, calm and patient, enlightened, knowing, philosphical

Even though Thoreau went to Walden to escape the expectations society set, he soon realized that he was just creating new paths and conforming to those instead. These paths were not just physical ones that others could follow, but also mental ones that he kept travelling down. Thoreau realized this and left Walden to experience other paths as well. We all rely on the comfort of routine and follow paths that others have already taken, and it's hard to break free of this.

He wanted people to just stay who they were even if they sensed different things than those around them. Thoreau was always concerned with individuality, maintaining a sense of who you are even if you hear a different "music" than those around you. He's saying that you have to be yourself. You shouldn't try to be someone you're not.

Within each of us is the real being which can rise to the surface albeit from within a society that stifles individuality and liberty. Also, time is irrelevant. We should live in the present knowing that in the future, by some sort of chance, we will be able to fully expose our beautiful uniqueness. Be patient and good things will come.

We can prepare for our perfect summer life by being ourselves and enjoying the present and the place we are now. March to your own beat and enjoy what you have instead of preoccupying yourself with where you think you should be.