Henry David Thoreau On Slavery

Thoreau asserts slavery is a ¨gross¨ and immoral practice. His fear of not being divine and immortal allows him to dislike slavery. Therefore, Thoreau would support abolition as he believed owning slaves would compromise a man 's divinity, a great fear of his. Slavery also limits the spiritual growth of the enslaved individuals, thus opposing Thoreau 's belief all people should be exposed to spiritual advancements. It was also deemed frivolous by Thoreau.

A man 's “primitive and low condition” results from maintaining a modern lifestyle because an aspect of this lifestyle is acquiring a job, commonly farming, and requiring excessive frivolous possessions. Individuals feel the need to work diligently to support themselves and their need for

In the 19th century many individuals deemed the Native AMericans savages as they did not follow the traditional culture and beliefs of the American people and chose to live a simplistic life without futile goods. Therefore, Thoreau admired their ability to live with only necessities. Thoreau states, ¨However, if one designs to construct a dwelling-house, it behooves him to exercise a little Yankee shrewdness, lest after all he find himself in a workhouse, a labyrinth without a clue, a museum, an almshouse, a prison, or a splendid mausoleum instead. Consider first how slight a shelter is absolutely necessary. I have seen Penobscot Indians, in this town, living in tents of thin cotton cloth, while the snow was nearly a foot deep around them¨ (Walden, 14). He illustrates an individual 's desire to build lavish unnecessary shelter, in comparison to the modest shelter of the Native AMericans. Their simplistic shelter of thin cotton tents, is perceived as uncivilized to many, but to Theroeu it it noble as it demonstrates they only require necessities. A noble savage is, therefore, the Native Americans whose unconventional traditions depict them as savage to many Americans, but noble to

Technology, to Thoreau, is a way of transforming an individual into a machine and permitting them to become distracted from important matters. Therefore, he believes there is no benefits to arise from modernization and technological novelty. The factory system, as well, is denounced by Thoreau for its dangerous conditions and ability to make corporations rich, not to produce quality clothing. Thoreau affirms his aminoisty when stating, ¨I cannot believe that our factory system is the best mode by which men may get clothing. The condition of the operatives is becoming every day more like that of the English; and it cannot be wondered at, since, as far as I have heard or observed, the principal object is, not that mankind may be well and honestly clad, but, unquestionably, that corporations may be enriched¨ (Walden, 13). Moreover, Thoreau believes factory produced goods and the overall use of technology disassociate people with the connection of producing goods and doing work.

Thoreau was a transcendentalist thus possessing the beliefs of transcendentalism. He wanted to maintain a spiritual life connected to nature. He believed an individual could find the divine directly through a connection to nature and a man must become a part of nature to truly find the divine. His ideology was derived from the transcendentalism movement created by Thoreau