Walking
First published 1914 · English · 42 pages
- Novels
- Philosophy
- Science and nature
Walking is an essay in which Thoreau praises the art of sauntering and the value of time spent outdoors. He describes the walker's need for wildness and freedom, and he reflects on the pull of the West as a symbol of hope and discovery. Part philosophy, part nature writing, it argues that a healthy mind depends on regular contact with the land. It was published after his death and remains a favourite among lovers of the outdoors.
Quotes
In Wildness is the preservation of the World.
Eastward I go only by force; but westward I go free.
There is plenty of genial love of Nature, but not so much of Nature herself. Her chronicles inform us when her wild animals, but not when the wild man in her, became extinct.
The partridge loves peas, but not those that go with her into the pot.