I'm wondering how different Walden Pond was back then. Concord must have been a mere village then, don't you think? When I moved to Cape Cod 23 years ago, my mother's old house was completely surrounded by forest. Since then, people sold lots and houses were built. Now we hear leaf blowers and lawnmowers and diggers and the quiet we originally enjoyed is gone. The new residents are refugees from the city and think they can make as much noise as they want. Sometimes, loud music, loud parties. So, strangely enough, we are preparing to move to the city where neighbors tend to be quieter.
good one / i also read thoreau at that formative time of my life (early twenties) when the idea of simplicity and civil disobedience was very compelling / recently i borrowed a copy of the illustrated thoreau from the library and it was a delight / i actually live in that simplicity / a hermit in my own house and my own pond even though i live in suburbia : )
Although his solitude was incomplete, I think he was always there with me after I first read his work as a teenager, and I am grateful. It made me more comfortable with my own personality, which when viewed from the outside comes across as a bit too standoffish. I just require less human interaction than most people. Anything that makes people stop and think about following the crowds and fads of their era is a good thing in my opinion.
I came to Thoreau through The Dead Poets Society (like many, I suspect). I tried reading Walden at the time, but, for whatever reason, my much younger self couldn't get through it and so, again like many, embraced the odd quote.
I like the idea that what he wrote about wasn't his actual experience. That has inspired me to take Walden from my book shelf and add it back to my pile of "to-read" books.
I also live on an island, but LOL only if you face a certain direction, cover your ears, and squint, it's hard to mistake it for solitude. That said, it's a lot quieter and less busy than the city, as long as you stay off the main drag up the island on summer weekends.
when I first moved here there was a traffic light at the ferry landing, then not another one for 25 miles when you got to Coupeville. Now there are 4 more on the south end and you couldn't make a left turn with out them.
I thought I liked solitude, until the pandemic imposed it on me. I guess modified solitude is not a bad thing.
I'm wondering how different Walden Pond was back then. Concord must have been a mere village then, don't you think? When I moved to Cape Cod 23 years ago, my mother's old house was completely surrounded by forest. Since then, people sold lots and houses were built. Now we hear leaf blowers and lawnmowers and diggers and the quiet we originally enjoyed is gone. The new residents are refugees from the city and think they can make as much noise as they want. Sometimes, loud music, loud parties. So, strangely enough, we are preparing to move to the city where neighbors tend to be quieter.
I have never read any Thoreau; maybe it's time to start.
Todays answer to Thoreau's yearning: living off the grid!
good one / i also read thoreau at that formative time of my life (early twenties) when the idea of simplicity and civil disobedience was very compelling / recently i borrowed a copy of the illustrated thoreau from the library and it was a delight / i actually live in that simplicity / a hermit in my own house and my own pond even though i live in suburbia : )
This is lovely, Ramona. And if you want to share some grief feeling more privately, do email me!!
Although his solitude was incomplete, I think he was always there with me after I first read his work as a teenager, and I am grateful. It made me more comfortable with my own personality, which when viewed from the outside comes across as a bit too standoffish. I just require less human interaction than most people. Anything that makes people stop and think about following the crowds and fads of their era is a good thing in my opinion.
I came to Thoreau through The Dead Poets Society (like many, I suspect). I tried reading Walden at the time, but, for whatever reason, my much younger self couldn't get through it and so, again like many, embraced the odd quote.
I like the idea that what he wrote about wasn't his actual experience. That has inspired me to take Walden from my book shelf and add it back to my pile of "to-read" books.
Thanks.........
I also live on an island, but LOL only if you face a certain direction, cover your ears, and squint, it's hard to mistake it for solitude. That said, it's a lot quieter and less busy than the city, as long as you stay off the main drag up the island on summer weekends.
when I first moved here there was a traffic light at the ferry landing, then not another one for 25 miles when you got to Coupeville. Now there are 4 more on the south end and you couldn't make a left turn with out them.
I thought I liked solitude, until the pandemic imposed it on me. I guess modified solitude is not a bad thing.