Henry David Thoreau's Accomplishments

Henry David Thoreau Henry David Thoreau was an American philosopher and writer. Thoreau had somewhat of an impact on the world he lived in but even more so in the world after his death. He was relatively unknown to the “general public” during his lifetime, but influenced other philosophers from his “Civil Disobedience” essay after his death (“Henry”). He influenced people like Leo Tolstoy, Mahatma Gandhi, and Martin Luther King Jr. His work also influenced later generations of philosophies such as marxists, existentialists, and anarchists. Although living in a world where he was unknown he influenced many important figures after his death, which is why “he came to be regarded as one of the foremost American writers,” and also went on to be

He was born on July 12th, 1817 in Concord, Massachusetts. He first started his studies at Concord Academy from 1828 to 1833, then later on going to Harvard University from 1833 to 1837. He took many different classes at Harvard such as: rhetoric, philosophy, mathematics, and science. Once graduating from Harvard, he moved on to work at Concord Academy until he was fired for refusing to administer corporal punishment. Soon after graduating he met Ralph Waldo Emerson, who was the first to introduce Thoreau to transcendentalism. This became a real turning point in Thoreau’s life because it then opened doors to his own beliefs and philosophies

Just five years after that, in 1854, Walden was published to the public. Thoreau also published other works such as his self-published book entitled A Week on the Concord and Merrimack Rivers which was an elegy for his brother. This book was not so popular and put Thoreau into a huge debt that took two years to pay off. This book being published by the suggestion of his friend, Emerson, the “flawed advice” caused their friendship to be broken and not fully healed over time (“Henry”).
Thoreau died in Concord on May 6th, 1862 at 44 years old. His initial cause of death was from tuberculosis. His first contracted tuberculosis was in 1835. He suffered through it sporadically throughout his life. In 1859, he was caught in a rainstorm and became severely ill due to both his current tuberculosis and bronchitis. His health slowly declined over the next three years until he finally became bedridden. He seemed to accept his “imminent death” but spent his last months editing his travel books