Reflecting on Civil Disobedience and Other Essays written by Henry David Thoreau, the reader is able to capture his life philosophy. For instance, in "Civil Disobedience" he addresses man's obligation to stand up to what is right and moral and in "Life Without Principle" he emphasizes the importance of knowing one's self in order to live a meaningful life. However, in "Walking" I feel we capture the true spirit of Henry David Thoreau.
Thoreau starts off his essay by explaining the art of walking. To him walking was more then getting from point A to B, but a way for him to be free and one with nature. You can sense his strong belief in nature and the harmony of life and its impact on each one of us. Thoreau states in his essay "I think that I cannot preserve my health and spirits, unless I spend four hours a day at least - and it is commonly more than that - sauntering through the woods and over the hills and fields, absolutely free from all worldly engagements." By reading that you can easily see what a simple man Thoreau was. He would place nature above materialism in his private life. This is evident how he lived his life, Walter Harding states in a biography that "Thoreau built a ten-by-fifteen-foot cabin in Walden and by simplifying his life was able to live comfortably on as little as twenty-seven cents a week." I believe Thoreau was very into nature, and if he were here today, he would probably be considered an environmentalist. In walking he states "Nowadays almost all man's improvements, so called, as the building of house, and the cutting down of the forest and of all large trees, simply deform the landscape, and make it more and more tame and cheap." That simply shows the feelings that Thoreau has for nature. .
Reading about Thoreau, learning how he lived, knowing that he lived barely on anything, you can see how pure and simple he was. Thoreau expressed his principles through symbolic actions as well as the written words, by reading "Walking" you can see his spirituality in his own life, and his true spirit expressed throughout this essay.
