Being Henry Thoreau In his book Walden, Thoreau packs up ship for two years and heads out to live a life of experiment and solitude. The ultimate purpose of his book is to make people aware of the lives they have submitted themselves to, and likewise re-evaluate what they place more value in; themselves or their possessions. The question Thoreau asks the reader is whether they control their possessions or do their possessions control them? …showed first 75 words of 1856 total…

…showed last 75 words of 1856 total…passion that causes a reader to raise their eyebrow. What many fail to realize is that Thoreau pushed his works to notoriety by writing with more anger than he did originality. He wrote the words of Emerson, only with a chip on his shoulder and daggers for words. If I could offer advice to the great writer, it would be to just be yourself. Then again Emerson already said "Insist on yourself, and never imitate".