Henry David Thoreau By: BC and KS

Childhood Thoreau grew up in ConcordThoreau grew up in Concord Worked in his father’s pencil shopWorked in his father’s pencil shop Adult Life He lived in natureHe lived in nature His equally famous night in jail to protest an inhuman institution and an unjust war, are distilled in his best known works, Walden and "Civil Disobedience." His equally famous night in jail to protest an inhuman institution and an unjust war, are distilled in his best known works, Walden and "Civil Disobedience." A former schoolteacher, Henry David Thoreau spent two years in the 1840s living in a one- room hut beside Walden Pond in Massachusetts, where he studied nature and wrote peaceful essays and poems.A former schoolteacher, Henry David Thoreau spent two years in the 1840s living in a one- room hut beside Walden Pond in Massachusetts, where he studied nature and wrote peaceful essays and poems. Thoreau became a pop icon for anti-war and pro-environment groups late in the 20th century.Thoreau became a pop icon for anti-war and pro-environment groups late in the 20th century.

Education Thoreau graduated from Harvard University and taught school for several years before leaving his job to become a poet of nature. Concord Academy

Family Background His parents were permanently poor. He had two older siblings, Helen and John Jr., and a younger sister, Sophia Romantically inclined toward several women, but never married.

Tragedies In 1859, following a late night excursion to count the rings of tree stumps during a rain storm, he became ill with bronchitis. His health declined over three years with brief periods of remission, until he eventually became bedridden. Thoreau first contracted tuberculosis in 1835 and suffered from it sporadically over his lifeJoys Wishing to lead a life free of materialistic pursuits, he supported himself by growing vegetables and by doing odd jobs in the nearby village. He read avidly on the subject, particularly botany

Quotes “The greater part of what my neighbors call good I believe in my soul to be bad, and if I repent of anything, it is very likely to be my good behavior. What demon possessed me that I behaved so well?" Nathaniel Hawthorne wrote: “[Thoreau] is as ugly as sin, long-nosed, queer-mouthed, and with uncouth and rustic, though courteous manners, corresponding very well with such an exterior. But his ugliness is of an honest and agreeable fashion, and becomes him much better than beauty.”

What Modern Day Films Would He Like? He would like the Jungle Book and Tarzan because he liked nature. He would like the Discovery Channel because he liked real, down to earth stuff. He might not like action movies because he wasn’t around anything dramatic He wouldn’t like The Notebook because it’s romantic and he had multiple partners.

Work Cited "Henry David Thoreau." The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition. Houghton Mifflin Company, Stevenson, Robert Louis. Henry David Thoreau: His Character and Opinions. Cornhill Magazine. June "Henry David Thoreau." Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. Encyclop � dia Britannica, Inc., Answers.com 12 Mar Henley Library Curator. "The Walden Woods Project." The Thoreau Institue at Walden Woods The Walden woods Project. 13 Mar Henry, Conrad. "Henry Thoreau." Who He was & Why he Mattered. Calliope Film Resources, Inc.. 13 Mar 2007.