Henry+David+Thoreau

=__Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862) __= = = ="Success usually comes to those who are too busy to be looking for it." =

Background Information: - Born in Concord, Massachusetts - Went to Harvard University and studied classes such as rhetoric and philosophy - Worked in his Father's Pencil Factory - Continued to open school in Canton with brother, John Thoreau.  : Worked as a teacher for 1 year and two weeks and moved on to be a land surveyor. - Died of Tuberculosis at age 44

Contributions to America: - Wrote many books and lectures (most didn't sell well, until he passed away and his journals were published) - Built his own home on Walden Point and enjoyed many years in the nature : Wrote a book named "The Week on the Concord and the Merrimack Rivers", which was solely about nature and how its wrong to destroy it - Wrote a book about his brief visit to jail : He refused to pay his taxes which went to the Mexican Wars. This is because he was against slavery, and expanding it to Mexico. - Wrote many lectures on the evils of slavery - After the Fugitive Slave Act was written, he wrote a response called Civil Disobedience... // : "There are thousands who are in opinion opposed to slavery and to the war, who yet in effect do nothing to put an end to them; who, esteeming themselves children of Washington and Franklin, sit down with their hands in their pockets, and say that they know not what to do, and do nothing; who even postpone the question of freedom to the question of free trade, and quietly read the prices-current along with the latest advices from Mexico, after dinner, and, it may be, fall asleep over them both. What is the price-current of an honest man and patriot today?" // - This quote explains Thoreau's feelings towards slavery and the wars with Mexico which he feels were not handled correctly by the government leaders

Fun Facts: - His brother John payed his Harvard tuition - Spent time in jail - "Moose" and "Indian" were some of his last words, because of his love for nature - He had a very thick and long beard, which he thought the women loved

Bibliography:  "Henry David Thoreau - Biography and Works. Search Texts, Read Online. Discuss." The Literature Network: Online Classic Literature, Poems, and Quotes. Essays & Summaries. Web. 08 Mar. 2011. .

"Henry David Thoreau." Virginia Commonwealth University. Web. 08 Mar. 2011. .

<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',Helvetica,sans-serif;">[|"Civil Disobedience by Henry David Thoreau." The Transcendentalists - including Ralph Waldo Emerson - Henry David Thoreau - Others - Dial Magazine. Web. 08 Mar. 2011. <http://www.transcendentalists.com/civil_disobedience.htm>.]