""Walden is a book that defies traditional classification. Thoreau moves nimbly between social commentary, political critique and vivid descriptions of the parenting behavior of wood-cocks. His assessment of his modern society is at once insightful and boorish. He identifies with piercing accuracy the enslavement of his fellow citizens to the complexities of modern life while neglecting the many gifts that are given to us in and through the City of Man." -From Brian Brown's Introduction. Although Henry David Thoreau spent ...
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""Walden is a book that defies traditional classification. Thoreau moves nimbly between social commentary, political critique and vivid descriptions of the parenting behavior of wood-cocks. His assessment of his modern society is at once insightful and boorish. He identifies with piercing accuracy the enslavement of his fellow citizens to the complexities of modern life while neglecting the many gifts that are given to us in and through the City of Man." -From Brian Brown's Introduction. Although Henry David Thoreau spent only two years living by Walden Pond, his lengthy account of the experience is venerated by outdoorsmen, nature lovers, and all those disgusted with the burdens of a myopic nation. His writing is painstaking in its detail and rapturous in its descriptions of the simple beauty surrounding his unadorned cabin in the Massachusetts countryside. Thoreau's self-imposed exile from society challenged others to provide what he believed he offered: a candid and sincere account of one's own life, unsullied by the pursuit of wealth and influence. Walden is paired with Thoreau's essay On Civil Disobedience, in which Thoreau argues that it is the citizen's duty to resist a government's injustice. This Canon Classic has achieved mystical status: The rest of Thoreau's life, acquaintances, and accomplishments all fade into insignificance beside his short experiment at Walden Pond"--
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