The Portable Thoreau - Personal Statement Example

Walden Henry David Thoreau In the story of the artist in the of Kouroo, Thoreau tells of an artist who is focused on perfection to the exclusion of everything else around him. The belief that perfection is his life’s goal and that it is achievable seems to be the abiding theme of the story. The story seems to suggest that once a goal has been identified, life has no meaning until it has been accomplished. In order to live a meaningful existence, every man must chalk out his goals in life and pursue them relentlessly to their successful conclusion .

Drifting purposelessly seems an utter waste of the wonderful faculties that man is endowed with, and the stick itself may be symbolic of a man’s life that has to be shaped with the loving care and devotion that an artist gives to his creation. To me the story seems to be a parable espousing the virtues of single minded purpose in going about what one has set out to achieve. It tells of how everything else takes second place to the one goal one has set out for one’s self. It is a tale of devotion to the task in hand, completely disregarding everything else, without which perfection is not possible.

If the intentions are right and the devotion to achieving them exists then the result must be great success. As Thoreau himself points out what he learned as the result of his experiment at Walden “if one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours.” (Thoreau, Walden) I agree with this theory. I think if one can identify one’s goal and pursue it without being distracted by other issues, the only outcome will be success.

This has been proven by many great people in different fields whether they were scientists or sportsmen, freedom fighters or people born with physical disabilities, such people have overcome mighty odds by the strength of their determination. I think Thoreau is trying to tell us that our lives are what we make of them. We are the masters of our destiny, and no matter what our circumstances, it is up to us to shape them to fit our vision of what we want them to be. “However mean your life is, meet it and live it.

” (Thoreau, Walden) At the end of the story, I think Thoreau is speaking more of the spiritual self rather than the physical self. His references to Brahma point to an influence of Hindu philosophy. Many ancient sages have sought to elevate themselves spiritually by resorting to living a simple life with only the bare necessities as Thoreau himself did at Walden; and have been known to attain spiritual freedom. Henry David Thoreau’s curiosity about eastern or oriental philosophy has been well documented.

This story seems to me to be influenced by the theory of rebirth. I think the words “it suddenly expanded before the eyes of the astonished artist into the fairest of all the creations of Brahma.” (Thoreau, Walden ) refer to the wonder and immortality of the soul and “the heap of shavings still fresh at his feet” (Thoreau, Walden ) refer to the mortal remains of the many lives that he has had to live in order to become one with Brahma the creator. Works Cited Thoreau Henry David Conclusion to Walden A Penn State Electronic Classics Series Publication Web June 15 2011 http://www2.hn.psu.

edu/faculty/jmanis/thoreau/thoreau-walden6x9.pdf