Showing results for "Walking" in Movements

Henry David Thoreau discusses walking, the importance of nature, and the human need for walking in the wilderness.

In Nature, Emerson put forth the foundation of transcendentalism, a belief system that espouses a non-traditional appreciation of nature. Transcendentalism suggests that the divine, or God, suffuses nature, and suggests that reality can be understood by studying nature. Self Reliance contains the most thorough statement of one of Emerson's recurrent themes: the need for each individual to avoid conformity and false consistency, and follow their own instincts and ideas.

Walking was first published in the June 1862 issue of Atlantic Monthly. In this treatise, Thoreau reminds us of how the primal act of walking connects us with nature. He argues that the genius of walking does not lie in mechanically putting one foot in front of the other toward to a destination, but in mastering the art of sauntering. The themes of Walking include freedom, self-reflection, and exploration. Thoreau states that the act of walking marks the human being as an inhabitant, or part and parcel of nature, rather than a member of society.

“In wildness is the preservation of the world.” Here are three of Thoreau’s most famous talks brought together in one volume. “Walking,” “Autumnal Tints,” and “Wild Apples” are all autumn essays—contemplative, deliberate, and insightful. They are profound reflections on nature, beauty, and our place in the world. In 1862, during Thoreau’s last weeks, he received a request from The Atlantic Monthly’s new editor, James Fields, to submit some of his work. These three were all published that year, after his death