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3.6 AVERAGE
3.6 AVERAGE
challenging
informative
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
Personal opinions aside, this is probably one of the most important books ever written. That’s why I give it a 4. I take a few issues with the fact that Thoreau didn’t truly live away from society (his mother was doing his laundry), I do think that such a decidedly minimalist way of living is best for comparing to what was an industrializing, and is now a late stage, capitalist society. The text can get very annoying, especially when it veers into being self-congratulatory. There were times when I was literally pissed off. But over all probably invaluable. I also especially loved reading Civil Disobedience, feels like a very good account of American socialist-individualism - intriguing to me as I’m currently reading Marx!
informative
slow-paced
15.
"I have a great deal of company in my house; especially in the morning, when nobody calls. Let me suggest a few comparisons, that some one may convey an idea of my situation. I am no more lonely than the loon in the pond that laughs so loud, or than Walden Pond itself. What company has that lonely lake, I pray? And yet it has not the blue devils, but the blue angels in it, in the azure tint of its waters. The sun is alone, except in thick weather, when there sometimes appear to be two, but one is a mock sun. God is alone - but the devil, he is far from being alone; he sees a great deal of company; he is legion. I am no more lonely than a single mullein or dandelion in a pasture, or a bean leaf, or sorrel, or a horse-fly, or a bumblebee. I am no more lonely than the Mill Brook, or a weathercock, or the north star, or the south wind, or an April shower, or a January thaw, or the first spider in a new house." (127)
"I have a great deal of company in my house; especially in the morning, when nobody calls. Let me suggest a few comparisons, that some one may convey an idea of my situation. I am no more lonely than the loon in the pond that laughs so loud, or than Walden Pond itself. What company has that lonely lake, I pray? And yet it has not the blue devils, but the blue angels in it, in the azure tint of its waters. The sun is alone, except in thick weather, when there sometimes appear to be two, but one is a mock sun. God is alone - but the devil, he is far from being alone; he sees a great deal of company; he is legion. I am no more lonely than a single mullein or dandelion in a pasture, or a bean leaf, or sorrel, or a horse-fly, or a bumblebee. I am no more lonely than the Mill Brook, or a weathercock, or the north star, or the south wind, or an April shower, or a January thaw, or the first spider in a new house." (127)
Interesting but hard to get through, ran out of motivation
Thoreau is a great writer, despite his misanthropy and occasional moments of arrogance. Thoreau does not care what anyone else thinks, and he doesn't think you should care what other people think either. He describes his first year at Walden in intimate detail, and then sums up the second year in a sentence, saying it was pretty much the same. Surely he had some observations during that second year that we might find enlightening, but no. He's done. I find his grumpiness amusing, though I can see how others might not.
"Civil Disobedience" comes closer to the kind of rumination I would expect from a friend and colleague of Emerson. I'm not sure that Thoreau accepted or appreciated the label "transcendentalist," but he gets lumped in with them anyway. (He said at one point that if he didn't want to explain himself he would just tell his audience he was a transcendentalist.) Civil Disobedience is a powerful and thoughtful piece of writing, cited by dissidents from Gandhi to Mandela. It makes me uncomfortable in all the right ways.
"Civil Disobedience" comes closer to the kind of rumination I would expect from a friend and colleague of Emerson. I'm not sure that Thoreau accepted or appreciated the label "transcendentalist," but he gets lumped in with them anyway. (He said at one point that if he didn't want to explain himself he would just tell his audience he was a transcendentalist.) Civil Disobedience is a powerful and thoughtful piece of writing, cited by dissidents from Gandhi to Mandela. It makes me uncomfortable in all the right ways.
relaxing
slow-paced
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
This is the only book I've read where my first thought upon finishing it is "thank God I read this book before I died." Obviously I've loved books before, been grateful for books before, but this one spoke to me in a way others haven't. Some parts were deeply comforting, other parts stylistically stunning, still other sections philosophical and thought-provoking and deeply relevant to today.
There are so many good quotes, but here's my favorite: "Morning is when I am awake and there is a dawn in me." It's a simple line, but the image of dawn brimming within each of us is just so beautiful and joyful and loving. This book made me feel a lot of hope, even with its examination of pervasive societal issues.
There are so many good quotes, but here's my favorite: "Morning is when I am awake and there is a dawn in me." It's a simple line, but the image of dawn brimming within each of us is just so beautiful and joyful and loving. This book made me feel a lot of hope, even with its examination of pervasive societal issues.
I desperately wish to be as content as Thoreau when staring at ice or listening to owls. While I suspect he may have been uniquely gifted at the art of solitude, it is certainly not unattainable if effort is put forth to rid one’s world of the distractions which, quite unnecessarily, encumber this pursuit.
The truth in these books seems almost more clear because it is so unlike the truths which currently structure our lives. We are raised to value our competitive advantages, but competition is in a way the practice of discontentment. We seek to enrich ourselves and succeed primarily in weighing ourselves down. Though stated in a novel way, this concept is obviously an ancient one, but it perseveres for a reason.
I’ll allow for the possibility that I enjoyed this book because I felt it validated my decision to leave the professional world, but it was still damning in other ways that require further examination.
It is also a remarkable exposition on how to “wax poetic” about experiences that would otherwise be ignored by the untrained eye or ear. I am now aware that being bored in nature is purely due to a lack of proper attention.
His essay on “Civil Disobedience” should be pamphleted and dropped from planes all over the country, on account of it being painfully relevant and inspiring.
The truth in these books seems almost more clear because it is so unlike the truths which currently structure our lives. We are raised to value our competitive advantages, but competition is in a way the practice of discontentment. We seek to enrich ourselves and succeed primarily in weighing ourselves down. Though stated in a novel way, this concept is obviously an ancient one, but it perseveres for a reason.
I’ll allow for the possibility that I enjoyed this book because I felt it validated my decision to leave the professional world, but it was still damning in other ways that require further examination.
It is also a remarkable exposition on how to “wax poetic” about experiences that would otherwise be ignored by the untrained eye or ear. I am now aware that being bored in nature is purely due to a lack of proper attention.
His essay on “Civil Disobedience” should be pamphleted and dropped from planes all over the country, on account of it being painfully relevant and inspiring.
adventurous
challenging
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced