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Interesting read. Remember that Thoreau actually didn't write Walden in a deep isolated wilderness; rather, he lived in a cabin at the far edge of Concord, MA.

by acabal 11y ago

Interesting read. Remember that Thoreau actually didn't write Walden in a deep isolated wilderness; rather, he lived in a cabin at the far edge of Concord, MA. There's even an entire section in Walden about receiving visitors, and another one about the trips to town he takes a few times a week. So living totally isolated 7 miles from the nearest town (which she makes sound more like a "highway rest stop" than a "town") goes beyond what Thoreau did. I point this out because there's solitude, and then there's isolation. In my mind, there's only terror in one of those.

jqm 11y ago
I believe when Thoreau was arrested for not paying his taxes in opposition to the Mexican War he had walked into town to have his shoe fixed. So yes... it's a common misconception he lived out in the middle of nowhere. He really didn't at all. There were many many people at the time much more isolated and solitary than Thoreau... they just didn't generally write books.
hmohanraj 11y ago
I visited Walden Pond a few weeks ago and learned this as well! It even says on the plaque next to the foundations of his cabin that he was less than a 30 minute walk from his parents' house. It made me laugh, because the brief times Thoreau was mentioned in school, it was always done in a way that reinforced the notion that he was living in isolation.
jameshart 11y ago
Yup - I actually live in the woods near Concord where Thoreau used to wander (Walden pond is round the corner). It's very nice. Good schools. You can get pizza delivered. People say "Oh, but surely it's changed a lot since Thoreau's day", but honestly - we're talking about Concord. The town was founded in 1635, it was already 200 years old when Thoreau moved into a hut on his buddy Emerson's land. The Boston and Maine rail line past Walden Pond was already running when Thoreau moved in, for goodness' sake.
- zeddie 11y ago
  That area would have changed a lot, if it weren't for a very active preservation effort. The Walden Woods Project, founded by Don Henley (yes, that Don Henley) prevented multiple large commercial development projects from happening in the 1990s, and has allowed the character to be maintained.

by acabal 11y ago

jqm 11y ago

I believe when Thoreau was arrested for not paying his taxes in opposition to the Mexican War he had walked into town to have his shoe fixed. So yes... it's a common misconception he lived out in the middle of nowhere. He really didn't at all. There were many many people at the time much more isolated and solitary than Thoreau... they just didn't generally write books.

hmohanraj 11y ago

I visited Walden Pond a few weeks ago and learned this as well! It even says on the plaque next to the foundations of his cabin that he was less than a 30 minute walk from his parents' house. It made me laugh, because the brief times Thoreau was mentioned in school, it was always done in a way that reinforced the notion that he was living in isolation.

jameshart 11y ago

Yup - I actually live in the woods near Concord where Thoreau used to wander (Walden pond is round the corner). It's very nice. Good schools. You can get pizza delivered. People say "Oh, but surely it's changed a lot since Thoreau's day", but honestly - we're talking about Concord. The town was founded in 1635, it was already 200 years old when Thoreau moved into a hut on his buddy Emerson's land. The Boston and Maine rail line past Walden Pond was already running when Thoreau moved in, for goodness' sake.

zeddie 11y ago
That area would have changed a lot, if it weren't for a very active preservation effort. The Walden Woods Project, founded by Don Henley (yes, that Don Henley) prevented multiple large commercial development projects from happening in the 1990s, and has allowed the character to be maintained.