This article is an excerpt from the Shortform book guide to "Walden" by Henry David Thoreau. Shortform has the world's best summaries and analyses of books you should be reading.
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What choices are the right ones for you? Do you tend to follow your intuition and live by your convictions?
Henry David Thoreau made an interesting choice when he went to live in the woods. Perhaps even more interesting was his decision to leave the woods two years later. By looking at his example, you can draw inspiration to make your own choices.
Read more to learn how Thoreau carved out his own life and how you can choose your own path, as well.
How Thoreau Chose His Own Path
Before we look at Thoreau’s advice on how to choose your own path, let’s consider his example. One of Thoreau’s reasons for going to Walden involved his confidence in his own choices and his belief that he needed to trust his intuition. He felt that moving to the woods was the right choice for him, so he followed his own path. Thoreau contends that we’re all capable of living moral and meaningful lives if we follow our intuitions and honor our convictions. He writes that there are “higher laws” than those of human society. By distancing himself from the city, even by a short walk through the woods, he could more easily live according to his own values.
Thoreau also champions self-reliance, not only in providing for your own material needs but also in enriching yourself spiritually. He argues that every person needs to seek their own path toward spiritual fulfillment as an individual independent in their thoughts and actions.
(Shortform note: By living at Walden Pond for two years, Thoreau tried to achieve what Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote about in his essay “Self-Reliance”: the ideal of avoiding conformity and following his own instincts. Some scholars say that it was during the two years at Walden that Thoreau stepped out of Emerson’s shadow and rejected Emerson’s idealism in favor of something more practical. One writer notes that the degree to which we’re free to pursue our own paths is determined by factors that are largely outside of our control. She writes that, if Emerson’s idealism seems too optimistic [to Thoreau or to modern readers], it might be because his self-reliance depends on having the social and material resources to be independent.)
How to Choose Your Own Path
Acting on Thoreau’s advice to follow your own path could look different for everyone. But, he offers two principles that might help you to discern which path to take.
Live an independent life. Thoreau doesn’t argue that you need to ignore society. Instead, he contends that it’s important to find and live according to your values, even when they conflict with what everyone else is doing. (For example, he felt happy to spend a night in jail if that meant that he was living in accordance with what he believed was morally right.) Thoreau writes that by living independently, we can make every moment meaningful.
Don’t be afraid to change course. To Thoreau, finding your own path doesn’t require committing single-mindedly to a destination and never wavering. Instead, he acknowledges that your priorities can change—as his did when he ultimately left Walden after two years. He argues that the important thing is to spend your time in ways that are meaningful to you. Everyone’s path to fulfillment is their own to choose and to change as needed.
(Shortform note: One critic writes that Thoreau’s choice to leave the pond he loved—and would later make famous—was the most interesting choice that Thoreau made during his time in Walden Woods. Thoreau’s decision to move on from the woods that made him so happy seems to illustrate his belief in the necessity of continuing to move forward. Historians say Thoreau continued to return to Walden Pond even after his cabin was sold and dismantled. And, for many years, he labeled journal entries “To Walden.” One might argue that Thoreau never truly left Walden behind.)
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Here's what you'll find in our full Walden summary:
- The philosophy behind Henry David Thoreau's classic novel
- How you can build a meaningful life by living in harmony with nature
- A look at how Thoreau spent his time at Walden Pond, outside the book
