1. Compare and contrast the views on the natural world expressed by
William Bartram and John James Audubon. Who seems more attentive
to detail? Who looks more at the landscape as a whole?
Whose writing would you want to read more of, and why?
2. Henry David Thoreau is often hailed as the most notable progenitor of environmental awareness in this country. Bring forth specific examples from Walden that address ideas of ecological relationships and the conservation of natural resources.
3. One of the oft-cited passages from Thoreau (although not from Walden, it is actually found in the
essay Walking) is “In
wildness is the preservation of the world.” What do you think
Thoreau meant by that? Was there much wildness about Walden Pond?
4. Walking was obviously one of the main pastimes pursued by Thoreau
while living at Walden Pond, and one that enabled him to encounter the
natural
world and to take it all in at a measured pace. What other physical
activities
did he engage in, and how did these put him in touch with his
environment,
both literally and metaphorically?
5. Flora and fauna figure prominently in the book. List by
common name (not the Latin scientific nomenclature) some of the more
prominent species of plants and animals encountered by Thoreau. Was his
botanical
eye that of a scientist, or was it more utilitarian? Which
creature did
Thoreau seem most fond of? Why do you think so? What were
some spiritual or transcendental
aspects of his stance toward nature as expressed in his descriptions of
living things?
6. Thoreau proclaimed that “I went to the woods 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 ...” What do you think Thoreau learned at Walden Pond?
7. How important is the concept of place to an understanding of Walden? Cite specific
references to various components of landscape that
contribute to Thoreau’s geography. How does he position his
home at
Walden Pond at the local, regional, or even global scale?
8. Transcribe your favorite quotation from Walden, and explain why you chose this particular passage.