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Henry David Thoreau's Accomplishments

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After Thoreau’s graduation from Harvard College, David Henry Thoreau changed his name to Henry David Thoreau. The young man returned to his hometown of Concord, Massachusetts. In the year of 1837, America was in the midst of an economic depression. Many people did not have a job and the people with a job were scared of losing it. Being a Harvard graduate, as Thoreau was, opening the door to many opportunities and vast job titles. Four popular professions of such prestige school offered an advanced ranking in the military. Thoreau felt unfit for the military, his views on the government and how America was currently not in a war felt no place to enroll. The law was also an option but often disagreed with the rules and regulations of the government
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Thoreau used powerful speech in his essay about the act of civil disobedience, which he himself had done. Publication was not Thoreau’s only approach in his urge for change. Thoreau targeted the legislative system through his refused to pay taxes. He believed that if because he does not support the ideas of the government then he must not pay the taxes. This non-violent resistance to obey taxation brought about the attention of the government.

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2124 Words | 9 Pages

Thoreau 's views on the government by comparing the government to a machine. He states, ”When the machine was producing injustice, it was the duty of conscientious citizens to be ‘a counter friction’ (i.e., a resistance) "to stop the machine.” The two major issues being debated in the United States during his life was slavery and the Mexican-American War in which were major reasons he wrote his essays. In the mid to late 1840’s slavery has been indoctrinated into American society in which caused rifts between Americans.

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790 Words | 4 Pages

Everyone in high school could use a hero and LaBarge found his. Thoreau was an inspiration to LaBarge and influenced his decisions and actions, much like the “heroes” of today. Today people, especially teenagers, look to celebrities as a guide. They believe that if they can have the same style or act the same way as their favorite star, then they will be accepted or become popular. This is not always the case.

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Abdullateef Mumin English 2327, Assignment #6 Dr. Brandon Hernsberger Dec 6, 2015. The Changes of Philosophy that Thoreau went through. Henry David Thoreau, one of the greatest American transcendentalists in the 19th century went through some changes of philosophy during the time between when he wrote his two books, "Resistance to Civil Government" and "A Plea for Captain John Brown." As we all know that in the essay of resistance to civil government, Henry David Thoreau was contextualized around passivity while in the essay of a plea for captain John Brown is contextualized around aggression.

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The main similarity in the writings of Thomas Jefferson and Henry David Thoreau is the idea of revolution against an abusive government. The main difference is the context in which each document was written, the Declaration of Independence as the colonies were rebelling against Great Britain and forming their own government, and Civil Disobedience as criticisms of the government developed within nearly seventy-five years after the signing of the Declaration. Both Jefferson and Thoreau share ideas of revolution, although overthrowing the government is seen in many cases as illegal. Both documents share a common theme of revolution, and both authors believe the best way to move toward a better government is civil disobedience. Jefferson and Thoreau believe that whether it is the struggle for independence or being freed from injustices of the government, civil disobedience and revolution are necessary in order to live in a society based on freedom.

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730 Words | 3 Pages

We have little time on earth and it goes by so fast, Living a good life doesn 't have to be measured on how long you live, but what you do during the time you 're on earth fulfilling your dreams, hopes, and self-meaning accomplishments. Henry David Thoreau once stated “ most men lead lives of quiet desperation and go to the grave with the song still in them “.His quote is relevant, it can be said he based it on his era, yet it still applies to today 's day in age. These are people who will never really understand themselves until it’s too late and untill they come to an end in their lives. People don 't stand up to a cause until it 's too late.

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Kaitlyn Rodriguez Mr. Cedeño U.S. History F Block 12/7/14 Henry David Thoreau Henry David Thoreau was an america author and naturalist and is considered to be one of the most influential figures in American history and literature.

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Individuals lay the foundation of America. The Founding Fathers of this unique nation broke their allegiance with Great Britain to create an improved governing body. They desired an individual-centered authority as opposed to Britain’s monarchy, which ruled with tyranny. These Founding Fathers experienced a neglectful democratic monarchy that cared little about the ethical treatment of its people. The domineering actions of Britain challenged these historic individuals to form a new cultural identity.

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Although following the rules is good and all nothing gets done unless you fight for it. It is people like Henry Thoreau that change the world. Without these people the world would be an awful place. Anything that has ever been changed for the better is because the people have fought for it. Henry Thoreau paved the way for these people to fight for what is right.

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rent is a money-slave”(Lee 90). Yet more than slavery, Thoreau was against all forms of oppression or being forced to do something that he did not believe in. On July 23rd 1846, Thoreau was arrested for not paying taxes because the money would fund the Mexican-American war, which he was against. Henry David Thoreau also quit his dream job of teaching because the school demanded him to flog the students, which he refused to do. It can be easily observed that Henry David Thoreau would support both of these organizations despite all success, size, leadership, etc.

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995 Words | 4 Pages

Thoreau’s Work Ethic In Walden , Henry David Thoreau explains to the reader that time should not be spent on meaningless work but instead living life to the fullest. The reason why he believed that meaningless work was a waste of time is because it does not allow one to be free but instead makes one feel enslaved with long hours accomplishing absolutely nothing. Millennials in the 21st century feel that their work can be meaningless and want to explore better opportunities. When millennials do this it causes problems for employers to keep workers and also causes millennials to have a harder time trying to find another job because employers do not want those kind of workers working for them.

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578 Words | 3 Pages

Henry David Thoreau was a philosopher, poet, and a very outspoken person about society. He discusses his opinions on how people should live in his essay “Where I Lived and What I Lived For.” Thoreau's philosophy of simplicity and individualism and self-sufficiency poses many dangers for communities as a whole. Although there are many setbacks, his philosophy is, however, still viable today. Thoreau strongly advocates self-sufficiency and individualism in this essay.

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608 Words | 3 Pages

The great transcendentalist Henry David Thoreau was an avid believer in the idea that simplicity is one of the keys to happiness. Over the last few days I have combed, piece by piece, through a large portion of room in order to organize everything, and hopefully de-clutter in the process. I’ve done this in the hopes that I will not only begin to understand Thoreau’s world-view, but also learn something about my own views. For me, sorting is a long process, full of hard decisions about some of the smallest things.

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783 Words | 4 Pages

Henry David Thoreau is one of the primary promoters of the transcendentalist movement and has been inspiring people to take on the transcendentalist lifestyle ever since the mid 1800’s. Mccandless was an admirer of Henry’s philosophy but he wasn’t as fully immersed in his work and ideals as Thoreau was to his own. His intentions were not as closely aligned to the movement as Thoreau’s and the difference between these icons are clearly visible. Self reliance is one of the most significant components of the transcendentalism movement that Henry David Thoreau contributed to in his literary career. “I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived.” - (taken from Henry David Thoreau’s “Walden”).

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Thoreau defines a happy life in a multitude of ways although his main idea is that society is not necessary for happiness. He uses many examples of why society is bad or has used its resources needlessly. He states that the post office isn't necessary because he has only received mail that's important or “worthy” once or twice in his entire life (Thoreau, Where I Lived and What For). Thoreau does finds many things in traditional society useless or a waste of resources. He also believes universities cannot teach him because he is above them and that libraries cannot give him reading materials that will improve him because he is to advanced (Thoreau, Reading).

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