Thoreaus Masculinity - Book Report/Review Example

Thoreau's Masculinity In David Henry Thoreau's texts emerges a distinctly American masculinity in which the ideal man should embody the following ideals: self sufficiency, virtue, and oneness with nature. These three main characteristics can be seen promoted in multiple ways throughout his texts, which he very intuitively uses universal observations to sway readers to his point of view. In Thoreau's, Walden and other Writings, he addresses concepts like economy and a return to the wild. Through his connection, with nature he finds a clear path to universal truth. His works total over 20 volumes and include every topic from history, philosophy, ecology and environmentalism. He also served as an abolitionist against slavery for his entire life by lecturing across the country against the Fugitive Slave Law. Every man's search for wisdom can be connected to Thoreau's simple search for truth, in which he praises these three main characteristics as the most admirable qualities of the American man. Thoreau's theoretical energy was inspired by the wild. He found it necessary to live free in the wilderness provided by Walden Pond for two years and two months , in order to find the clarity he needed to search for truth. He followed the notion set by Plato, that wisdom is attained through the continuous pursuit of truth. This was a concept originated by Plato's mentor Socrates through his ideals of continuous self analysis. All, of which, is presumed will lead one to the most meaningful life. In his piece, Natural History of Massachusetts he says, You cannot go into any field or wood, but it will seem as if every stone had been turned, and the bark on every tree ripped up. But, after all, it is much easier to discover than to see when the cover is off. It has been well said that "the attitude of inspection is prone." Wisdom does not inspect, but behold Thoreau, pp. 130-131). Here as Thoreau teaches patience through the appreciation of nature. He also argues in favor of self preservation in that he promotes the preservation of nature and believes man to be as equally a part of nature as any other animal in the wild. Virtue is also a core ideal that Thoreau aspires for in his writing and in turn convinces the reader to aspire for as well. He would often contrast virtue with popular ideals at the time which he felt were unbefitting to the ideal American male, but he also often spoke directly on the concept of morality and virtuous behavior. In his 1849 piece, A Week on the Concord and Merrimack Rivers he says, Absolutely speaking, Do unto others as you would that they should do unto you is by no means a golden rule, but the best of current silver. An honest man would have but little occasion for it. It is golden not to have any rule at all in such a case (Thoreau, p.74). In his chapter on economy, Thoreau contrasts the popular view of inherited wealth. Where most people would consider inheriting great wealth as a blessing, Thoreau's take is the opposite. He believes it impedes a man's freedom to live his own life, by inheriting a subservience to, what he calls, necessity. In his piece On the Duty of Civil Disobedience, which he wrote in 1849, he communicates this concept to the reader in his text when he says, The rich man ... is always sold to the institution which makes him rich. Absolutely speaking, the more money, the less virtue. Here Thoreau contrasts the concept of wealth with that of virtue. He makes the direct statement that one born into wealth is not free but sold into never being able to be virtuous. It's very ironic that he is able to flip one of the most desired and admired origins in American Capitalist society on its head. The American Dream in essence is the pursuit of wealth/happiness; by Thoreau denouncing the pursuit of money he is indirectly redefining, or disregarding, the American Dream. One might assume that this disdain for the American Dream and its detrimental affect on manhood was a reoccurring theme that developed over time in Thoreau's writing, because in his 1854 work "Slavery in Massachusetts" he says, I would remind my countrymen that they are to be men first, and Americans only at a late and convenient hour (Thoreau, p.401). Thoreau was a devout abolitionist and he spoke out devoutly against slavery. Here in his piece on slavery, he reminds American men that they should not be afraid to go against the grain of their nation if it means sacrificing their values. In this context, he correlates this statement more to freedom and one's ability to be self reliant independent of the mandates of one's government. Thoreau developed this perception through living out in the wilderness and doing hard labor to support himself. While he felt this made him exceptionally free, it also forced him to appreciate his moments of Leisure as well. This is a freedom of which he felt those born into wealth were deprived. Nothing better communicates this ideal than in On Walden Pond than when he says, I see young men, my townsmen, whose misfortune it is to have inherited farms, houses, barns, cattle, and farming tools. for these are more easily acquired than got rid of. Better if they had been born in the open pasture and suckled by a wolf, that they might have seen with clearer eyes what field they were called to labor in... Why should they begin digging their graves as soon as they are born (Thoreau, p.25) This further enforces the view that Thoreau is a man of the land, and that he grounds his search for wisdom within a connection to nature. His denouncement of monetary means and the functions of civil life, along with his use of imagery (like a man being suckled by a wolf ), create a wild-like environment free of social clutter, in which the reader is permitted to search for his own self worth. Thoreau is at times characterized as just a man who lived lazily out in the woods for the self benefit of avoiding work. In truth, Thoreau was very self-sufficient, and made a living from the work he did with his bare hands. This contrast of work and leisure is the core foundation of his search for meaning. Self sufficiency is by far the most appealing of Thoreau's ideals for men, because it is the one that is most respected in contemporary society. If Thoreau were to say he had lived in the woods, and he lived miserably, roughing it, with absolutely no benefit to his wellbeing than he would appear foolish. It is only through declaring his own self sufficiency that he is even respected as a man himself. The fact that he can live a civilized, if not more civil, life outside the boundaries of the popular culture of his era, is enough to make him an admirable figure to the reader. Thoreau becomes a figure to be emulated and from this point the reader is much more liable to respect and hang on his every word. This is part of the reason why early on, in Walden he establishes this understanding with the reader. In his Letter to Horace Greeley, he says It is five years that I have been maintaining myself entirely by manual labor,-not getting a cent from any other quarter or employment. Now this toil has occupied so few days,-perhaps a single month, spring and fall each,-that I must have had more leisure than any of my brethren for study and literature. I have done rude work of all kinds. From July, 1845, to September, 1847, I lived by myself in the forest, in a fairly good cabin, plastered and warmly covered, which I built myself. There I earned all I needed, and kept to my own affairs. During that time my weekly outlay was but seven and twenty cents; and I had an abundance of all sorts. (Thoreau, pp. 170-171) Here Thoreau claims his self sufficiency by pointing out how he has labored over the years in the wilderness and how he has been able to take care of his own affairs apart from the ways of normal society. His trials in the wilderness are anything but strenuous, Thoreau even describes his labor as compliments to his leisure; and the world he creates for himself appears to be so natural, one can't help but assume he has tapped in to the core truth of how life is meant to be lived. Again, he is able to take male readers on this journey entirely through his proclamation of self sufficiency. This aspect of independence from reliance on the American governmental social structure is as appealing as it is a target for skeptical envy. In fact Thoreau authentic embrace of natural freedom through self sufficiency has even led to his own masculinity being put into question. Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson is known for harshly judging Thoreau's masculinity, and in fact referring to his ideals as being effeminate. In one publication when referring to Thoreau he said, Thoreau's content and ecstasy in living was, we may say, like a plant that he had watered and tended with womanish solicitude; for there is apt to be something unmanly, something almost dastardly, in a life that does not move with dash and freedom, and that fears the bracing contact of the world. In one word, Thoreau was a skulker. He did not wish virtue to go out of him among his fellow-men, but slunk into a corner to hoard it for himself. He left all for the sake of certain virtuous self-indulgences. (Stevenson, prt 1) Stevenson's publication proved to be more malicious to the public than intuitive, and some other authors even responded in Thoreau's defense. In his own defense against criticisms of his masculinity just like these Thoreau was noted as saying, We are tempted to say that his genius was feminine, not masculine. It was such a feminineness, however, as is rarest to find in woman, though not the appreciation of it; perhaps it is not to be found at all in woman, but is only the feminine in man (Thoreau, p.398). Here Thoreau is able to easily identify the irony and insecurity in calling a man feminine. Because he is a naturalist, he is unable to label a man's natural being as that of a woman, and because he is an intellectual he easily identifies the social infatuation in degrading another man's character by making him out to be effeminate. By Thoreau so poetically contesting accusations like these, he signifies a deep comfort he has with his own sexuality; while at the same time, he identifies the foolish nature inherent in questioning the masculinity of others. His position is that no matter how feminine a man may behave, the femininity he embodies is still that which is inherent in all men and solely a manly characteristic. Furthermore, he is right. It is always the case that when one can intelligently oppose the social norms of a society that they are subject to the backlash of all of that societies hypocrisies. Stevenson questioning Thoreau's sexuality is only one example. In many of Thoreau's works, he speaks out against the government. While this always demonstrated his rebellious independence to his readers and further solidified his self sufficiency, it also garnered him much attention from the legal system. Thoreau's self reliance and his opposition to the government inevitably catch up to him when he is thrown in jail for refusal to pay taxes. He actually writes a piece on his time in Jail in which he talks about past experiences with Emerson and meeting a man who is falsely accused of starting a fire. This experience only further emphasizes how devout Thoreau is about his convictions. In the name of his faith in self sufficiency, he sees himself as a man independent of governmental mandates, despite how the government might see it. He also shows that he is willing to serve any sentences handed down to him for standing up for his beliefs. The image of the American male which Thoreau implies through his life, and the literary recording thereof, is one of a man who believes his government serves him, and he is not a slave to his government. This is the core defining trait in Thoreau's perception and projection of what it means to be a man in America. In sum, Thoreau's value of self sufficiency, oneness with nature, and virtue are not just implied through his writing as the key characteristics inherent in the ideal American male, but they are directly referred throughout the entire body of his work in contrast to the most appalling of ideals. Thoreau doesn't just hard fought characteristic seem appealing, but he makes the tedious struggle of achieving them appealing as well. When he rants of how he survived in the wild on seven dollars and twenty cents a week entirely from physical labor, it only becomes appealing to the reader once it is revealed the amount of leisure the wilderness affords him. When he mentions virtue, it seems almost impossible and spiritually straining to be completely virtuous, until he likens it to a measure of patience as opposed to a test of character, and relates man with nature. Even the fact that Thoreau's masculinity has come under question and he is able to respond to the jealous accusation so fluid and intellectually, only goes to show that there is a need for his male construct in American society. That American culture, especially in the 1800's, was so void of men adhering to ideals like Thoreau's that they didn't know how to label the poet himself. To call Thoreau's ideals effeminate, is to only reveal an even deeper level of male insecurity; and, this is a male insecurity that Thoreau attempts to release American men from through stressing the importance of attaining self sufficiency, oneness with nature, and virtue. Annotated Bibliography Walden and Other Writings, H. Thoreau, Elibron Classics, 1845 Thoreau's most popular work, it embodies many of the characteristics for which he has become famous. Hands down it is the highest selling of all of Thoreau's works and it basically chronicles his experience on living by Walden Pond. Thoreau, Henry David (1817-1862), U.S. philosopher, author, naturalist. "Slavery in Massachusetts" (1854), in The Writings of Henry David Thoreau, vol. 4, p. 401, Houghton Mifflin (1906). This work is a call by Thoreau for the State government of Massachusetts to take military action against the federal government in opposition to slavery. The work is often noted by many Scholars as being much more deeply impassioned than his work Civil Disobedience. Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862), U.S. philosopher, author, naturalist. "Natural History of Massachusetts" (1842), in The Writings of Henry David Thoreau, vol. 5, pp. 130-131, Houghton Mifflin (1906). This work is more of an ecological essay done by Thoreau on the wild life of Massachusetts and the history of many of the birds, reptile and animal plant life present in the region. It serves as an excellent example of Thoreau's appreciation of nature, but more importantly the natural aptitude he developed from being in the wild for so long. Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862), U.S. philosopher, author, naturalist. Letter, May 19, 1848, to Horace Greeley, in The Writings of Henry David Thoreau, vol. 6, pp. 170-171, Houghton Mifflin (1906). This piece serves as an example of Thoreau's poetic and literary abilities. This piece is noted as being an exposition of Thoreau's artistic comfort with the English language and many scholars are noted for crediting this piece as one of Thoreau's first writings that recognized him as an artistic minded individual as opposed to a transcendentalist, or fighter for social injustice. Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862), U.S. philosopher, author, naturalist. A Week on the Concord and Merrimack Rivers (1849), in The Writings of Henry David Thoreau, vol. 1, p. 74, Houghton Mifflin (1906). An account of a boat trip taken by Thoreau in 1839, this piece is a lyrical poem and travel essay. In it the author speaks on his travels with Emerson. He also philosophizes on Bhagavad-Gita and the problems with Christianity as well as the history of all of the native people he runs across traveling down the Merrimack River. Stevenson, Robert Louis. "Henry David Thoreau: His Character and Opinions". Cornhill Magazine. June 1880. < http://thoreau.eserver.org/stevens1.html> This is an article given reference to that was written by a Scottish author who questions Thoreau's masculinity. The author's bias is very obvious, and by the end of the first paragraph it becomes prevalent that he is too jealous of Thoreau to actually rationally critic him. The article does present the nature of the male ideals of which Thoreau was in opposition. Read More