Term Paper on
Henry David Thoreau
Henry David Thoreau (1817-62) is considered as pone of the most celebrated
figure in American thoughts and literature. During his stay in Harvard, he was
inspired by the writings of Ralph Waldo Emerson, who later on became his teacher
and best friend. In the year 1845, Thoreau isolated himself from all worldly and
material things and started his experiments and analysis of nature and humanity.
He dedicated most of his time to reading and writing and these experiences lead
to the creation of his famous book ‘Walden’ in 1854. Besides other things, the
book contains his expression of his transcendentalist philosophy. His writings
greatly influenced the philosopher, religious thinkers and freedom fighters of
the times that followed. Walden is translated into many languages.
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Thoreau and Contemporary Religious Beliefs
Since the inception of this world, man is in search of truth. Right from
Socrates, history has witnessed numerous thinkers and philosophers who presented
their theories pertaining to the nature of the universe, mankind and about the
religion and the ‘Divine Spirit’. In the 19th century, when Thoreau came with
his assessment of religion, there emerged other beliefs and interpretation of
the Christianity and Bible.
Thoreau was opposed to the religion as an institution and not in favor of the
rites and rituals performed in the name of religion. For him a relationship
between man and God was important but he did not believe in any formalities to
reach that goal. “Mistrustful of institutionalism, Thoreau disliked churches and
ignored most aspects of Christian theology, but he believed that "man flows at
once to God when his channel of purity is open." He was a "panentheist,"
believing that though the entire universe exists in God, God transcends the
universe and possesses consciousness and benevolence.” (THOREAU, HENRY DAVID) To
attain the purity of heart and soul, he believed, man should alienate himself
from material entities and should live a life close to nature. He himself
experienced this feeling while in isolation and his beliefs were the outcome of
his intercourse with nature. He was a believer of the transcendentalist
philosophy that proposes to discover spiritual reality through human intuition,
while rejecting an outward absolute authority. “It taught the individual’s
ability to receive "flashes and insights" of truth as the highest form of
knowledge. It stressed the visionary and idealistic aspect of human nature. This
humanistic philosophy was a direct rejection of the Biblical doctrine of the
headship of Jesus Christ and the supreme authority of the Scriptures.”
(Historical Heresies)
On the other hand, the contemporary religious beliefs of the 19th century
included different sects that emerged in Christianity. Joseph Smith Jr.
(1805–1844) of New York founded the Mormons sect of Christianity. Mormons
believed that that the Godhead consists of three separate personages (Father,
Son, Holy Spirit). They maintained that souls preexist this life and those who
are the believers would be awarded an everlasting life and would be transformed
into gods. Contrary to the ideas to transcendentalism, the Mormons viewed that
“the second coming of Christ will lead to a chain of events culminating in a
final resurrection, after which earth will become a celestial home for all
people.” (U.S. Religious Sects Originating in the 19th Century)
Other contemporary religious beliefs of the 19th century included Rationalism,
Universalism, Pantheism, Deism, Unitarianism and Romanticism. “Rationalism in
the philosophy of religion is the claim that the fundamental principles of
religion are innate or self-evident and that revelation is not necessary.”
(Rationalism, Encarta) “Deists held that a certain kind of religious knowledge
(sometimes called natural religion) is either inherent in each person or
accessible through the exercise of reason, but they denied the validity of
religious claims based on revelation or on the specific teachings of any
church.” (Deism, Encarta)
Unitarianism is a “religious movement that affirms the undivided unity of God,
as opposed to the Trinity, and the humanity of Jesus, rather than his divinity.
The religion emphasizes personal responsibility and reliance on conscience and
reason rather than on doctrine or external authority.” (Unitarianism. Encarta)
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Above are the descriptions of some of the faiths that existed in the days of
Thoreau. Mormons have gone very further in their beliefs and their faith is more
like a mythology in which supernatural beings are taken as in sole control of
human life and affairs. Their belief of life after death and transformation of
man also seems quite illogical. Rationalism is opposed to the existence of
supernatural entities and holds human knowledge as a source of inspiration. This
philosophy is somehow similar to Thoreau’s beliefs. Deism maintains that
religious knowledge is inherited by men or has learnt it through reason. It
rejects the idea of revelation or church as the source of human faith.
Unitarianism rejects the main idea of Christianity, the concept of Trinity. They
value Jesus as a human being and not as a Son of God or a deity. They regard
human consciousness as the source of guidance and do not believe in an external
authority. Of all the faiths, Unitarianism is closer to the thoughts of Thoreau.
In Thoreau’s time, there existed beliefs other than those discussed above.
However, in the light of the above description, it can be concluded that
Thoreau’s ideas were also agreed upon by a number of other theorists of his
time.
Works Cited
Deism, Encarta Encyclopedia 2002, 1993-2001 Microsoft Corporation
Historical Heresies: 19th Century Humanistic Philosophies and America’s Cultural
Corruption. http://www.truthinhistory.org/19century.htm
Rationalism, Encarta Encyclopedia 2002, 1993-2001 Microsoft Corporation
THOREAU, HENRY DAVID, http://www.historychannel.com/cgi-bin/frameit.cgi?p=http%3A//www.historychannel.com/perl/print_book.pl%3FID%3D35749
U.S. Religious Sects Originating in the 19th Century http://www.factmonster.com/ipka/A0881831.html
Unitarianism. Encarta Encyclopedia 2002, 1993-2001 Microsoft Corporation
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