Wed

Wed

1. Ch 11- Higher Laws

   • "I caught a glimpse of a woodchuck...I was strongly tempted to seize and devour him raw."
     • This shows the savage instincts of man kicking in.
   • Fishermen, hunters, wood-choppers, and others are in a more favorable position for observing Nature.
     • This is obviously true because their jobs take place in Nature.
   • Thoreau sold his gun because he didn't need it to kill fish; he had no pity for the fish.
     • Getting rid of the gun can be seen as Thoreau getting further away from society and becoming a non-conformist.
   • Thoreau's reasoning for owning a gun before was to study birds up close.
   • Hunting is a very important and valuable sport to Thoreau.
     • He says that if a boy does not know how to hunt, he has neglected his education.
   • Thoreau has respect for all creation and this might be the reason he starts to fish less and less each year.
   • To Thoreau, animal food was unclean.
   • The things which Thoreau does not use such as tea and animal food were not in line with his thinking.
     • Thoreau wanted a clean diet.
   • Thoreau believes that as humans improve, they will leave off eating animals.
     • Once this occurs, their diets will be clean.
   • Water is the only drink for a wise man.
   • When someone eats to please themselves, they are not advancing their spiritual life.
   • Thoreau is trying to become pure.
     • Chastity is the flowering of man.
   • Purity inspires people and impurity is what puts people down.
   • People are the sculptors of their body.
     • A body is a temple.
   • To love a better life, treat yourself with respect.