Chris McCandless and Thoreau had a lot in common. Both men had the same intelligent and wise thought and actions. Transcendentalism means to assert the existence of an ideal spiritual reality that empirical. Its scientific reality and is knowable through intuition: (quote- Webster’s Dictionary Online). We all can see that Chris and Thoreau share the same beliefs of individualism, self-wisdom, and self- confidence.
Chris McCandless looked up to Henry David Thoreau’s ideas in his Walden excerpt. John Krakauer went on to make McCandless’ journey a novel of its own. However, Chris McCandless and Henry David Thoreau’s ideas on how one should live their life didn’t always compare as much as contrast. Thoreau does not like the outdoors as much as Chris does, “I left the woods for as good a reason as I went there. Perhaps it seemed to me that I had several more lives to live, and could not spare any more time for that one” (Walden).
In my opinion Henry David Thoreau and Martin Luther King Jr. have very similar purposes in their writings. Both author 's are writing to protest unfair laws. But they also have very different audiences. In Civil Disobediance, Thoreau writes how those who break unjust laws should suffer the consequences as a protest to the laws.
Roger Williams and Henry Thoreau both have their own, unique ideas of freedom. In some ways, their ideas can be fairly similar. However, they can also be very different. Whether it’s the way they execute how to make an idea become reality, or the way they think about certain problems in general. Williams and Thoreau may have similar ideas, however, they are still two very different people.
At this point in the narrative he tells readers about an experience he had while observing a woodchuck in the woods while on a walk. He then tells in detail how he wanted to eat this woodchuck in a brutal way. This thought process he was having while observing this animal brought him a better understanding that human beings still have a wild instinct inside of themselves. Which he respected the idea and acknowledged that these instincts still occurred within himself. This experience supported Thoreau belief that hunting/obtaining knowledge on nature was important at an early age.
Thoreau vs. Ben Franklin Henry David Thoreau and Ben Franklin are both very different in beliefs but are still both considered great writers in American History. Their religious views for one were very different but both were wise for the world they were in. They also had some similarities on the nature of man and society. Henry David Thoreau believed in Transcendentalism, which is coming one with nature and humans should be self reliant.
Imagine being alone in the wild. This is what Chris McCandless and Henry David Thoreau purposely put themselves through. But why did they do this? With such an abstract idea as they both had, there should be plenty of comparisons to discuss between the two of these men. Chris McCandless and Henry David Thoreau are comparable in what they learn, the people they affect, the reasons they leave society, and the success/failure that they experience during their lives.
Martin Luther King Jr VS Henry David Thoreau What is a transcendentalist? A transcendentalist is a radical logical and social movement that developed in New England around 1836. Henry Thoreau was a transcendentalist and was also a famous author where he wrote during the transcendentalist time. On the other hand Martin Luther King Jr was a person that fought for everybody to be equal. He had a speech called “I Had A Dream" Whereas Henry Thoreau and Martin Luther King Jr are different as Henry Thoreau didn't pay poll taxes and was an author of the 19th century, while Martin Luther King Jr was taking part in the civil right marches and role model in the 20th century, they are also similar as they both spent a day in jail, were transcendentalists, and well educated.
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.
Civil Disobedience In the dictionary civil disobedience is the refusal to comply with certain laws or to pay taxes and fines, as a peaceful form of political protest, but Thoreau and Martin Luther King have their own beliefs to civil disobedience. In Thoreau’s “Civil Disobedience” he writes about the need to prioritize one’s conscience over the dictates of laws. Martin Luther King uses civil disobedience as something that effectuates change in the government. Both Thoreau and Martin Luther King has similar yet different perspectives on civil disobedience.
Both Henry David Thoreau and Martin Luther King had experience with civil disobedience. They were both arrested for peacefully protesting laws they found unfair. Thoreau was put in prison for refusing to pay a poll tax, and was ultimately protesting slavery. King, on the other hand, was put in jail for protesting the unjust treatment of blacks and other colored people across America. Though the circumstances were slightly different, King and Thoreau use many of the same techniques to appeal to their audiences.
Henry David Thoreau and Martin Luther King Jr. never met, but they did have common ideas about civil disobedience. Thoreau went to jail when he refused to pay a poll tax and King went to jail when he marched in Birmingham to protest the injustice there towards African Americans. While they were in jail, they wrote letters on why they chose to be disobedient. In their letters, they wrote for different audiences. Thoreau's letter went to the general public and was about how they should rise up when they feel strongly about an injustice.
Civil Disobedience between King and Thoreau Martin Luther King, Jr. and Henry David Thoreau were two different people living in different periods, but both their impacts changed history. Henry David Thoreau and Martin Luther King, Jr. are very similar, but very different people. King has lived with unfair laws and has protested against them along with Thoreau protesting taxes. Despite those similarities, King thinks citizens can find peace by fighting for their beliefs, but Thoreau finds his peace through God and nature. King and Thoreau have greatly impacted today’s society regardless of their similarities and differences.
Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau both fond nature to be essential to being a whole person: spiritually and emotionally. Emerson saw nature’s effect on people and their thoughts, whereas Thoreau saw the deliberateness of nature and thought that if people could seize the same decisiveness that they would have more to enjoy in life. Both authors believed that humans needed to enjoy nature to be one with the universal being that is the basis of Transcendentalism. Emerson wrote “When we speak of nature in this manner, we have a distinct but most poetical sense in the mind.” (Nature 693) Emerson was saying that nature is similar to poetry for the mind, in that it is relaxing and wholesome.
Consequently, what Thoreau proposed was simplicity rejecting modern civilization to return to nature and let the individual to develop his/her highest possibilities. Thoreau not only made a critique of the modern society as Emerson did, but also he practiced his ideology: he experienced that life is better without crowd, luxuries and complexity. The transcendentalist poet spent two year close to nature. He lived at Walden Pond where he wrote entire journals recounting his experience. Thoreau is well known for his book “Walden” (1854).
