Henry David Thoreau

Personal Statement:

Hello, my name is David Henry Thoreau, but you can just call me Henry Thoreau. I was born in Concord, Massachusetts on July 12, 1817. I attended courses in rhetoric, classics, philosophy, mathematics, and  at Harvard College  between 1833 and 1837. After graduating, I began to teach in Concord, but my refusal to beat my students led to my dismissal from the position after only two weeks. From there, I went on to open a school with my brother, but after he died from lockjaw, I was forced to close it. In 1845, I decided to build a small cabin on the shore of Walden Pond, which is where I remained for two years to advocate for being self-reliant and living a simple life. During that time, I worked odd jobs in a near by village and ate the vegetables that I grew myself. I devoted most of my time to observing nature, reading, and writing, while keeping a detailed journal of my observations, activities, and thoughts. Sometime after, I was imprisoned for a night because I refused to pay a toll tax that supported the Mexican War. I am I notable person because I was a philosopher and creative artist that encouraged Transcendentalism and individualism. I also was an scientific originator as well as a strong antislavery activist. In my lifetime, I've contributed my works of literature as well as environmental developments. My essay "Civil Disobedience" was about injustice by the government, especially slavery. Because of my love of nature and the pureness of it, the book "Walden" that I wrote while secluded in the cabin on Walden Pond, became a base for environmental movements.I am valued for my early understanding of the idea that nature is made up of interrelated parts. Some even consider me to be the father of the environmental movement. My writings were spread far and wide, and because of how many people agreed and related to what was said, many people used my ideas as fuel for the reform movements of the Antebellum Era.

Issue(s):
I was a strong supporter of Transcendentalism. I believe that particularly organized religion and political parties were ultimately corrupted the purity of individuals, and that people should rely on themselves and be independent if they want to be their best.  II firmly believe that t is only from such real individuals that true communities can be formed, and my hopes were to spread those beliefs. Because of these beliefs, I think that the government is bound to be corrupt and unjust. I was a strong abolition supporter. My motives were purely philosophical, as I did not believe in organized religious parties, although many say nature and transcendentalism were my religion. 

Solution(s):
I hoped that my essays and literature would influence individuals to change their mind set about slavery and see that Transcendentalism was the rightful path to take spiritually. Because I lived in Massachusetts, many also saw themselves as antislavery activists. However, they did not fully commit to the cause and some still chose to participate in the commerce and agricultural trade that supported it, so I believed it was my duty to try to convince them to fully invest in our side. I tried to make people see that thee only effective and sincere way to express opposition is through concrete deeds and acts of resistance.  Some did not agree with my dedication to nature and want to live in solitude, calling it "unmanly"  and said I  wanted to "lower [myself] to the level of a woodchuck and walk on four legs." Although I admit that my essays influenced many more people after my death, including Gandhi, JFK, and Martin Luther King Jr, I believe that I changed the minds of many about abolition as well as how to support it, along with transcendentalism, despite this criticism.

Relationships with Others:
I would feel comfortable sitting next to  Lucretia Mott, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, William Lloyd Garrison, Angelina Grimke, Sojourner Truth, Harriet Tubman, Horace Greeley, Adin Ballou, Theodore Parker, Wendell Phillips, Arthur Tappan, John Greenleaf Whittier, David Walker, or Theodore Dwight Weld due to them also being against slavery in some way. I would also get along with Margaret Fuller and Lydia Marie Child because they were also transcendentalists.