瓦尔登湖毕业论文.docx

瓦尔登湖毕业论文.docx

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瓦尔登湖毕业论文

Contents

AnAnalysisoftheValueofH.D.Thoreau’sWalden

I.Introduction

HenryDavidThoreau（1817-1862）,afamousAmericanwriterinthenineteenthCentury,authorofWalden,wasborninConcord,Massachusetts,andgraduatedfromHarvardUniversityin1837.Whenhewasyoung,heoftenwenttothewoodswithhiselderbrother.ThereforehelovedtheNaturesodeeply.Inthe1950s,Americaneconomiessoaredsorapidlythattherewerealotofpeoplepursuingthemateriallifebutignoringthespirituallife.However,Thoreauwantedtolivesimply.AndatthattimetheTranscendentalistMovementwasverypopularinConcord,andEmersondidhaveagreatinfluenceonhim.AllofthesethatmadeThoreaudeterminetobuildacabinontheshoreofWaldenPond,thenhecouldlivealoneandbeclosetotheNature.Sooner,hewrotethefamousbook,Walden,whichmainlytalksabouthislifeandexperiencesduringthosedayswhenhelivedbyhimselfinthewoodnearWaldenPond.

In1845,Thoreaubeganhistwo-yearresidenceatWaldenPond,andhadputthetheoryoftranscendentalismandEmerson’sopinionsintopractice.Duringthatperiodoftime,hemaintainedthatmanwasapartofthenatureandmancouldandshouldco-existwiththenatureharmoniously.Today,heisregardedasoneofmajorinterpretersoftheNatureaswellasAmericanenvironmentalsaintinAmericanliteraryhistory.

Infact,sometimesweshouldgetridofthehubbubofthesocietyandlife,regardlessofwhatthatmeans.ThebestplaceweshouldgotoistheNature.OnlywhenwecomebacktotheNaturecanwerealizeourlimitationsandthenbetterunderstandourlife.ThoreauisnotconsideredasaprofessionalnaturalistandhismasterpieceWaldenisnotuniversallyacceptedandappreciated.Butwiththeseverityofenvironmentalcrisesandtheriseofenvironmentalmovements,Thoreau’sphilosophyonthenatureandlivingsimplyhaddrawnthepublic’sattention.Atpresent,manyresearchersallovertheworldarepayingmuchattentiontoecologyandimplicationsofthemodernsociety,theyhaveemphasizedtherelationshipbetweenplantsandlivingcreaturesaswellastheirenvironment.Basedonthepreviousresearches,thispapercontinuestoanalyzeThoreau’sthoughtsonthenatureinWaldenandstatesthathecannotmerelybeviewedasanecologicalwriterbutoneofthemostrepresentativenaturalists,whofocusedonthenatureitself.Ontheotherhand,itdiscussesafewrelatedtopicslikeUndertheDomeproducedbyChaijing.

Byexertingmeansofhistoricalcriticism,discussingandanalyzinghislifebackgroundandWalden,wecaneasilyfindhisopinionsofthenatureinWalden.Wecanseethathisviewsaboutthenaturehadpredictedthearrivalofenvironmentalcrises,andhadindicatedthedirectionthatpeopleshouldmoveforwardinthefuture.Ingeneral,Thoreauhasleftagreatlegacytotheworld,hepointedoutalotofpricelessimplicationsforMan.Therefore,itishumanbeings’dutiestopositivelyparticipateinthegroupsofenvironmentalprotectionasThoreaudid,foritisreallyaneffectivewaytoprotectandsaveourEarth.

II.TheEcologicalValueofH.D.Thoreau’sWalden

WiththethrivingofindustryinAmericainthe1850s,theenvironmentwasdevastatedseverelybypeople’sexcessivepursuitsofmaterials.Facingsuchasituation,manyscholarsadvocatedtoreturntothenature.Thoreau,atypicalrepresentativeinthatperiod,formedhisuniqueviewsofthenature.Inthispart,twomainaspectsofhisthoughtsofthenaturewillbeinterpreted:

thenatureisalivingentity;andthenatureisameanstomakehumanbeingsknowthemselvescompletely,italsofocusesontherelationshipbetweenManandNatureandtheimplicationsforhumanlife.

A.NatureasaLivingEntity

AsarepresentativeofRomanticism,Thoreaubelievesthatallthingsinthenaturearealiveandhedeemshumanbeingscanfeelthepowerofthenaturemerelybybeingclosetothenatureandlivinginthenature.What’smore,thenatureisanorganismthatneverdies,forthecycleofitisinfinite.

Sincethenaturehasalwaysbeenviewedasalivingorganism,soitisthenaturethatmakeseveryobjectsomeaningfultoThoreau.Hesaid:

“Naturemustbeviewedhumanlyatall;thatistosay,thescenesmustbeassociatedwithhumanaffections.Itindeeddemonstrateshisideaofthingsaslivingorganism.InThoreau’seyes,WaldenPondismorethananusualoneinConcord.Itisthesymbolofallthenature.DuringhislifeatWaldenPond,hetreatedeverythingasalive.AlltheweedsinPondwerecleanandbright.AndevenmorehedescribedPondwithbeautifullanguage:

“Alakeisthelandscape’smostbeautifulandexpressivefeature.Itisearth’seye,lookingintowhichthebeholdermeasuresthedepthofhisownnature”.（Thoreau,2004:

143）Itisobvioustoseehisromanticviewofthenature,andwecanreallyseethatthenatureisalivingentity,ourlifeisrootedinthenature,andisalsocontinuedbythenature.

B.NatureasaMeansofSelf-realization

Thoreauhadalwaysregardedthenatureasameansofself-realization.Thatistosay,Thoreau’swholelifeisaprocessofseekingtheself-realization.Inhisopinion,thenatureisameanstomakemanknowhimselfandtohaveabetterunderstandingofwhatkindofrelationshiphumanbeingsshouldcopewiththenatureandwhatkindoflifethathumanbeingsshouldleadto.Itisobviousthathumanbeingsandthenaturecankeepaharmoniousrelationship,andatthesametime,manshoulddecreasethedesireofmaterialismandmoneyworshipandthenfocusontheinnerhearts.

1.RelationshipbetweenManandNature

Inthe17thand18thcenturies,withtheadventoftheindustrialrevolution,theideaofthenaturewasincreasinglyrelatedtoamechanicalmetaphorwhichregardedthenatureasadeadmachinewhosefunctionwasjustforhuman’sexportationandmoneyworship.ThisridiculousattitudetothenaturewasdefinitelynotacceptedbyThoreauatall.Althoughhewasnothighlypraisedinhislife,hevariouslyobtainedthetitleof“sonofnature（BronsonAlcott）,”“bachelorofnature（LeonBazalgette）,”and“loverofnature”.InThoreau’seyes,mancanmaintainaharmoniousrelationshipwiththenaturebybeingadispensablepartofthenature,returningtothenatureandrespectingthenature.Asfarashewasconcerned,hethoughtthatthenatureisnotonlythehouseofhumanbeings,butalsothehomeofoursouls,sothatbeingharmoniouswiththenatureisthebestwaytomakethedreamofself-realizationandself-promotioncometrue.

Besides,Thoreauindicatedthatnaturalexuberancewasdamagedbyscienceandtechnology,whichalsodestroyedtheharmoniousrelationshipbetweenManandNature.InthechapterofSoundinWalden,Thoreautooktherailwayasanexampletoillustrateit,andwasskepticalabouthumanbeings’controlofthenature,criticizedourdestroyingtothenature.

Firstofall,manbelongstothenature.Itisuniversallyheldthatmanistherulerofthenature.However,asapuredefenderofthenature,Thoreauobjectedtoitandgavetheprioritytothewholenature.InThoreau’sphilosophyofthenature,oneprominentaspectwashisbeliefthatmanis“apartofthenature”whoisequaltothenature.Hemadehisremarkclearinthefollowinginspiringpassage:

“IwishtospeakawordforNature,forabsolutefreedomandwildness,ascontrastedwithafreedomandculturemerelycivil—toregardmanasinhabitant,orapartandparcelofnature,ratherthanbeingamemberofsociety.”（Thoreau,1971:

205）

Wecandrawtheconclusionfromtheabovethatismentioned.Ontheonehand,Thoreauwishedtobeadefenderofthenature,forits“absolutefreedomandwildness”;ontheotherhand,ThoreauhadexpressedhisownopinionoftherelationshipbetweenManandNature.Ratherthanbeingaministerofthenature,manis“aninhabitant,orapartandparceloftheNature.”ThisideaoftherelationshipbetweenManandNaturewasvividlyreflectedinWaldenwhichrecordedhiscommunionwiththenatureatWaldenPond.“IgoandcomewithastrangelibertyinNature,apartofherself.”（Thoreau,2004:

110）TheunionbetweenManandNatureisnotmerelyaspiritualperfectionthatThoreaualwayspursued,butalsoadoctrinethatheferventlypreachedtoothersortohimself.

Secondly,humanbeingsreturntothenature.Returningtothenature,namely,livingasimplelifewasapopularsloganinRomanticperiod.Thoreauisdifferentfromothertranscendentalists,hewentdeeplyandprofoundlyintothenatureandhewasanaturalist.Becauseofhispassionforthenature,Thoreau,wecanseehimanatureobserver,hadbeguntoliveinWaldenPondformorethantwoyears.DuringthetimewhenhewasatWaldenPond,Thoreaulivedinalifefreefrommaterialisticpursuits,hereducedhismaterialrequirementstotheminimum,andeventriedtobeself-sufficientineverything.Andhenotonlyobservedthenature,butalsoputhispassionofthenatureintothecommunicationwiththeanimalsandplants,andmadehimselfapartofthenature,closetothenaturebothinstinctiveandsensitive.FromThoreau’sperspective,ifmanwantstopursuethehighqualityandhealthylife,heshouldreturntothenatureandliveasimplelife.“WhileIenjoythefriendshipoftheseasonsItrustthatnothingcanmakelifeaburdentome”.（Thoreau,2004:

112）Healsothoughtthat“manwhohasinheritedfarms,houses,barnscattle,andfarmingtoolsisafool’slife”.（Thoreau,2004:

2-3）Furthermore,humanbeingsarebornwiththerelationshipwiththenature—theymusteat,drink,anddecomposewithinanaturalenvironment.Natureisapermanenthome.ThesethoughtscanbefoundfrequentlyinWalden.“AsIpreferredsomethin