Thoreau and Emerson Term Paper

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Individualism in the Eyes of Thoreau and Emerson

Literary works and philosophical ideologies in the early 19th century is characteristically individualistic, where belief in humanity's natural freedom (that is, affinity with nature) was given importance. The ideology of individualism is evident in the works of Henry Thoreau and Ralph Waldo Emerson, 19th century philosophers and literary writers who composed the works Walden and Self-reliance, respectively. These works from both philosophers advocate the need for an individual to assert his/her identity in a society intolerant of differences and changes.
In Walden, Thoreau narrates and documents his attempt in establishing a new life in the woods, primarily to deviate from the comforts that he and the society has learned to depend on. In his discourse, Thoreau states that, "many of the so-called comforts of life, are not only not indispensable, but positive hindrances to the elevation of mankind... To be a philosopher is not merely to have subtle thoughts,….....

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