In the course of the winter I threw out half a bushel of ears of sweet-corn, which had not got ripe, on to the snow crust by my door, and was amused by watching the motions of the various animals which were baited by it.
He is very observant of the movements of animals which demonstrates his appreciation for nature. He just watches them amused observing their beauty.
s I heard the foxes as they ranged over the snow crust, in moonlight nights, in search of a partridge or other game, barking raggedly and demoniacally like forest dogs, as if laboring with some anxiety, or seeking expression, struggling for light and to be dogs outright and run freely in the
He does a good job explaining the sounds that the foxes make. These animals are truly wild and free to do what they want. His use of "demonically" to describe the sounds makes me think of this type of wild as threatening but free.
l days, I watched the ducks cunningly tack and veer and hold the middle of the pond, far from the sportsman; tricks which they will have less need to pr
I think that watching the ducks escape the hunters brought Thoreau joy. From reading his excerpts I assume he would have wanted nature to come out on top.
bathe in the pond, making the woods ring with his wild lau
I like the use of "wild" to describe laughter. It makes me think of it as carefree and natural.
evere storms. It is darker in the woods, even in common nights, than most suppose. I frequently had to look up at the opening between the trees above the path in order to learn my route, and, where there was no cart-path, to feel with my feet the faint track which I had worn, or steer by the known relation of particular trees which I felt with my hands, passing between two pines for instance, not more than eighteen inches apart, in the midst of the woods, invariably,
This is very descriptive and helps me understand how difficult it was for him to get home at night. The nights were extremely dark. He chose to live in the woods, so even though he has to go through this when he returns from town, it is what he prefers to do in order to live with nature.
pon my shoulder, for my snug harbor in the woods, having made all tight without and withdrawn under hatches with a merry crew of thoughts, leaving only my outer man at the helm, or even tying up the helm when it was plain sailing. I had many a genial thought by the cabin
He compares his journey home to ship sailing and is explaining how on his journey home he was lost in his own thoughts rather than paying attention to what was happening around him. This is what he means by the phrase "leaving only my outer man at the helm".
When I was four years old, as I well remember, I was brought from Boston to this my native town, through these very woods and this field, to the pond. It is one of the oldest scenes stamped on my mem
At 4 years old this land made an impression on Thoreau that stuck in his memory and became a big part of his life. The bean field became the place where he could connect with nature and the place that would consume his energy and attention each day.
feet. There the sun lighted me to hoe beans, pacing slowly backward and forward over that yellow gravelly upland, between the long green rows, fifteen rods, the one end terminating in a shrub oak copse where
It is evident how much dedication he puts into his beans. Being outdoors tending to plants while the sun is beaming down from the sky is tiring, but the fact that he keeps going regardless of conditions shows commitment.
kle in the yard. No yard! but unfenced Nature reaching up to your very sills. A young forest growing up under your meadows, and wild sumachs and blackberry vines breaking through into your cellar; sturdy pitch pines rubbing and creaking against the shingles for want of room, their roots reaching
This makes me think about how wild and free everything is. Being surrounded by all the nature that is described and goes all the way up to the house without the restraint of a fence is wild and possess a level of tranquility.
Their dismal scream is truly Ben Jon
Ben Jonson was a playwright and poet who was known for his satirical work. He was very well known and is among one of the most successful playwrights to have lived.
alone than ever. For the rest of the long afternoon, perhaps, my meditations are interrupted only by the faint rattle ofa carriage or team along the distant high
He is alone it seems and distant from the sounds of society. So far in this excerpt he was surrounded by the busy world and sounds of the train. Now that the train is gone, everything is quieter and I feel like he is lonely.
bled with ennui. Follow your genius closely enough, and it will not fail to show you a fresh
This is inspirational. I interpret this as Thoreau saying to use one's own knowledge to understand the world. He discusses earlier that there are other ways to acquire knowledge other than reading, so people should use what they see and hear to interpret the world.
on the alert. What is a course of history, or philosophy, or poetry, no matter how well selected, or the best society, or the most admirable routine of life, compared with the discipline of looking always at what is
This sentence is deep and makes me think. A person can read what is written in books or poetry, but actually using the ability to see is a more important way of obtaining knowledge.
less? Shall the respectable citizen thus gravely teach, by precept and example, the necessity of the young man’s providing a certain number of superfluous glow-shoes, and umbrellas, and empty guest chambers for empty guest
Many people have extravagant furniture and belongings in their home that is unnecessary for life. The only reason people want expensive furniture and big houses with extra rooms is to impress others and seem like the better man. Often times people are actually poor but still purchase these things anyway.
“Do you wish to buy any baskets?” he asked. “No, we do not want any,” was the reply. “What!” exclaimed the Indian as he went out the gate, “do you mean to starve us?” Having seen his industrious white neighbors so well off,—that the lawyer had only to weave arguments, and by some magic, wealth and standing followed, he had said to himself; I will go into business; I will weave baskets; it is a thing which I can do. Thinking that when he had made the baskets he would have done his part, and then it would be the white man’s to buy them. He had not discovered that it was necessary for him to make it worth the other’s while to buy them, or at least
This is a really interesting story about a basket weaver. The decision for those to buy the baskets control the man's wealth. He must base his basket weaving work off of the wants of society because he needs people to buy his product.
of their race. None can be an impartial or wise observer of human life but from the vantage ground of what we should
By using "voluntary poverty", he is able to live life with simplicity and only with the necessities. Voluntary poverty is the best way to observe human life in the simplest most primitive way so he can understand how to live a practical life.
How can a man be a philosopher and not maintain his vital heat by better methods than other men
He is saying that a person should not be given the title "philosopher" if they do everything like everyone else in society. A philosopher must be someone who is different and is a nonconformist.
bbing your creditors of an hour. It is very evident what mean and sneaking lives many of you live, for my sight has been whetted by experience; always on the limits, trying to get into business and trying to get out of
He is observant of the lives people live. People spend money that they don't have and end up in dept. People are "always on the limits" which I think refers to the limits and restrictions of the debt. People think that getting into business will solve all of their debt problems.