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Man and Nature in Walden

Received: 6 May 2017     Accepted: 15 May 2017     Published: 13 July 2017
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Abstract

Since Walden publication, it has been studied from a great variety of perspectives, but these studies mainly focus on Thoreau’s views on nature in general, or his ecological ideas. A detailed and comprehensive study of the animals in Walden is rarely seen. Examining the animals in Walden, this paper intends to probe into Thoreau’s positive philosophy of life. Through a detailed analysis of man-animal relationship in Walden, we are in a better position to understand Thoreau as a realist. His retreat to nature is not an escape, but an attempt to put his belief into practice, aiming to find a model for the harmonious co-existence between man and nature. The record of his simple life in Walden proves that man and nature can live in harmony with each other, and provides a good example for human beings to solve the spiritual and environmental crises.

Published in International Journal of Literature and Arts (Volume 5, Issue 4)
DOI 10.11648/j.ijla.20170504.11
Page(s) 26-30
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2017. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Walden, Henry David Thoreau, Animal, Realist

References
[1] Naess, Arne. Ecology, Community and Lifestyle: Outline of an Ecosophy. Trans. David Rothenberg. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1989.
[2] Thoreau, Henry D. Walden. Oregon State University Press, Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1972.
[3] Sessions, G. Deep Ecology for the 21st Century. Boston: Shambhala Publications, Inc., 1995.
[4] Armstrong, Susan J. Botzler, Richard G. Environmental Ethics: Divergence and Convergence. New York: Mcgraw-Hill, Inc., 1993.
[5] Buell, Lawrence. The Environmental Imagination: Thoreau, Nature Writing, and the Formation of American Culture. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1995.
[6] Seton, Ernest T. Wild Animals I Have Known. Nanjing: Yilin Press, 2001.
[7] Furui Y. Networked Solitude: Walden, or Life in Modern Communications [J]. Texas Studies in Literature & Language, 2016, 58.
[8] Campbell A, Campbell J. Trails to Walden Pond: Pragmatic Aesthetics and Relational Aesthetics Approach the Examined Life [J]. Pluralist, 2016, 11.
[9] Simon K. Affect and Cruelty in the Atlantic System: The Hauntological Argument of Henry David Thoreau's Cape Cod [J]. ESQ: A Journal of Nineteenth-Century American Literature and Culture, 2016, 62.
[10] Bunge N. Prairie Gold: An Anthology of the American Heartland ed. by Lance M. Sacknoff, Xavier Cavazos, and Stephanie Brook Trout (review) [J]. Middle West Review, 2017, 3.
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    Qin Liu. (2017). Man and Nature in Walden. International Journal of Literature and Arts, 5(4), 26-30. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijla.20170504.11

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    Qin Liu. Man and Nature in Walden. Int. J. Lit. Arts 2017, 5(4), 26-30. doi: 10.11648/j.ijla.20170504.11

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    Qin Liu. Man and Nature in Walden. Int J Lit Arts. 2017;5(4):26-30. doi: 10.11648/j.ijla.20170504.11

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  • @article{10.11648/j.ijla.20170504.11,
      author = {Qin Liu},
      title = {Man and Nature in Walden},
      journal = {International Journal of Literature and Arts},
      volume = {5},
      number = {4},
      pages = {26-30},
      doi = {10.11648/j.ijla.20170504.11},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijla.20170504.11},
      eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ijla.20170504.11},
      abstract = {Since Walden publication, it has been studied from a great variety of perspectives, but these studies mainly focus on Thoreau’s views on nature in general, or his ecological ideas. A detailed and comprehensive study of the animals in Walden is rarely seen. Examining the animals in Walden, this paper intends to probe into Thoreau’s positive philosophy of life. Through a detailed analysis of man-animal relationship in Walden, we are in a better position to understand Thoreau as a realist. His retreat to nature is not an escape, but an attempt to put his belief into practice, aiming to find a model for the harmonious co-existence between man and nature. The record of his simple life in Walden proves that man and nature can live in harmony with each other, and provides a good example for human beings to solve the spiritual and environmental crises.},
     year = {2017}
    }
    

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Author Information
  • School of Foreign Language, Yancheng Normal University, Yancheng, China

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