Essays

Though perhaps most famous for Walden, Henry David Thoreau was also a prolific essayist. Many of his essays touch on subjects similar to his famous book: long walks through nature, things found in moonlight that are invisible during the day, his preference for wild apples over domestic ones. In many ways he prefigured environmentalism, expressing his love for untouched nature and lamenting what the encroachment of man was doing to it.He also had strong opinions on many other subjects. One of his most famous essays, "On the Duty of Civil Disobedience," was written as a protest against slavery and the Mexican-American War, and has since influenced figures such as Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr.Perfect for readers who appreciate transcendentalist philosophy and American nature writing, this collection brings together Thoreau's most celebrated and influential essays in one essential volume.