Henry David Thoreau was born in Concord, Massachusetts on July 12, 1817. He was the third child of John Thoreau and Cynthia Dunbar Thoreau. His father John owned a pencil factory which brought very little income; he was also known to be irresponsible. Henry grew up in a small house around which nature was very prevalent and spent a lot of time outside. This gave him time to think about nature, his inner self, and society, which were necessary for him in the future. Although the family had very little money, Henry received an education. He was a very smart and diligent child which eventually led him into entering Harvard College (presently Harvard University) in 1833. He studied in Harvard for four years and graduated in 1837, although he had to drop out for a couple of months because of an illness. People of his age had the choice to pursue a career in law, medicine, or church after graduating Harvard, which are all very prestigious paths even today. However, Thoreau chose none of the careers and had other plans in mind. He opened a school with his older brother John, but it didn’t last too long as his brother became ill, so in a mere three months, his school was closed and he started to work in his dad’s pencil factory. …show more content…
Ralph introduced Thoreau to the idea of transcendentalism, a philosophy that Ralph created expressing a new way of life, full of spirituality and simplicity. Thoreau was deeply touched by this new concept proposed to him. He slowly implemented transcendentalist values in his life and Ralph told him to write down what he feels. Ralph also granted Thoreau access to a pond he owned, Walden Pond, where Thoreau’s works will come to