“I went to the wood because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived.” - Famous lines from this section of Thoreau.
Uncommitted – Advocating it – No matter what, he wants us to not be committed to something. Whether it be to a political campaign or insane asylum, he does not want us to be bound down by shackles.
One of the reasons he retreated into the woods, even though he was facing life in the face by stepping into this experiment and “sticking it to the man” in a way, he was also escaping the man at the same time. We have to remember that a lot came from when his brother died in his arms not long before he went to the pond.
Talking about whether we should live as baboons or as men.... it is uncertain, or is it? Is Thoreau still applicable today? What is the end of life, society, and what are the means to getting there?
The thing I say is that it is not whether or not Thoreau is applicable today, but whether or not he was applicable during his day. If he was applicable during his day, then he is still applicable today, because the problems and the people he dealt with and talked about during his time have only become more complex and intense since he was alive. He would, today, even more than ever, advocate simplicity and a sense of escapism.
Do we need Thoreau to tell us to examine our lives again? Is it necessary still?
It's nice to have a man who can make you think that there is still hope for the things that upset you in your life.
Taking animals with their burrowing snouts and animalistic drives and comparing them to the mind of the human.
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