Nature Walking (The Concord Library) [Paperback]

Ralph Waldo Emerson (Author), Henry David Thoreau (Author), John Elder (Introduction)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 1, 1994

Together in one volume, Emerson's Nature and Thoreau's Walking, is writing that defines our distinctly American relationship to nature.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

This volume cleverly combines Emerson's Nature with Thoreau's Walking in a single, affordable paperback. Though written nearly 30 years apart (1836 and 1862, respectively), the two works express similar feelings and make perfect companions.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About the Author

Ralph Waldo Emerson (May 25, 1803 – April 27, 1882) was an American essayist, lecturer, and poet, who led the Transcendentalist movement of the mid-19th century. He was seen as a champion of individualism and a prescient critic of the countervailing pressures of society, and he disseminated his thoughts through dozens of published essays and more than 1,500 public lectures across the United States. Emerson gradually moved away from the religious and social beliefs of his contemporaries, formulating and expressing the philosophy of Transcendentalism in his 1836 essay, Nature. Following this ground-breaking work, he gave a speech entitled The American Scholar in 1837, which Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr. considered to be America's "Intellectual Declaration of Independence". Emerson wrote most of his important essays as lectures first, then revised them for print. (Courtesy of Wikipedia) 

Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862) was a writer and philosopher as well as a naturalist. Walden is considered his masterpiece. 

Product Details

• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: Beacon Press (July 1, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0807014192
• ISBN-13: 978-0807014196
• Product Dimensions: 5 x 0.4 x 8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #97,739 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #97 in Books > Science & Math > Nature & Ecology > Essays

More About the Author

There are few people as quoted and quotable as Ralph Waldo Emerson, founder of the transcendental movement and author of classic essays as Self-Reliance, Nature, and The American Scholar. Emerson began his career as a Unitarian minister and later put those oratory skills to move us toward a better society. More remains written on him than by him.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a true example of American naturalism at its finest, September 13, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Nature Walking (The Concord Library) (Paperback)

John Elder is a genius! The spirituality of Emerson's "Nature" is a perfect compliment to the deep philosophical naturalism of Thoreau's work. It just came in the mail an hour or so and i can't put it down! I'm going to reccomend it to all of my friends.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Take the walking, leave the nature, September 4, 2006

By 

O. Debowy (New York, NY USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Nature Walking (The Concord Library) (Paperback)

The essays Nature and Waling are written by two of the pillars of transendentalism. I have never read an essay which surmized why one should appreciate nature as much as walking. It passages made me comtenmpate why I appreciate nature and the simple pleasures of waling with no destination in mind. It soldified many ideas that I had for a long time and placed them in a beatiful framework. It is a shame that Walking is overshadowed by Walden. One drawback to this book, although it serves as a useful comparison is that after reading Walking, nature by Emerson seems inferior. Althoiugh a good qualitity essay, it does not have the emotional connection and seems to detached for my preference.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Emerson's got it, July 11, 2011

By 

Buster - See all my reviews

This review is from: Nature Walking (The Concord Library) (Paperback)

If you are an environmentalist read Nature! Emerson is not easy to read, but you will be amazed at his thoughts