An American writer and naturalist, Thoreau spent two years in a cabin by Walden Pond to live simply. He refused to pay a tax he saw as supporting slavery and the war against Mexico, and spent a night in jail. His essay on civil disobedience inspired Gandhi, Martin Luther King and environmentalists.
Core ideas
Living simply frees us from consumption and reveals what really matters
Nature is a source of wisdom, health and spiritual renewal
It is legitimate to peacefully disobey a government that commits injustice
The tradition: Transcendentalist
Transcendentalism was an American movement that valued intuition, nature and individual autonomy over institutions. Thoreau put it into practice, living by Walden Pond.
