Emerson and Thoreau

Paper Summary:

When one thinks of the American writers Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau, one immediately thinks of personal liberties and freedoms, civil and environmental responsibility and, above all, non-conformity. By comparing the "Self-Reliance" by Emerson and "Civil Disobedience" by Thoreau, the paper shows how these issues are reflected in the works of these two writers.

From the Paper:

"Thoreau believed each individual should let it be "known what kind of government would command his respect and that will be one step toward obtaining it" (Thoreau pg). The government, he felt, valued men, not as creative individuals, but as mere commodities. Like Emerson, Thoreau observed that society rewards those who give themselves partially to good works, calling them benefactors and philanthropists, yet the man who "gives himself entirely to his fellow-men appears to them useless and selfish" (Thoreau pg).

Emerson believed that each individual should seek peace by looking within and being true to one's soul. Thoreau believed that man should go one step further by voicing openly his disdain for injustice and intolerance."

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