Posthumously published in 1864, The Maine Woods depicts Henry David
Thoreau’s experiences in the forests of Maine, and expands on the
author’s transcendental theories on the relation of humanity to
Nature. On Mount Katahdin, he faces a primal, untamed Nature.
Katahdin is a place “not even scarred by man, but it was a
specimen of what God saw fit to make this world.” In Maine he
comes in contact with “rocks, trees, wind and solid earth” as
though he were witness to the creation itself. Of equal importance,
The Maine Woods depicts Thoreau’s contact with the American
Indians and depicts his tribal education of learning the language,
customs, and mores of the Penobscot people. Thoreau attempts to
learn and speak the Abenaki language and becomes fascinated with
its direct translation of natural phenomena as in the word
sebamook—a river estuary that never loses is water despite
having an outlet because it also has an inlet. The Maine Woods
illustrates the author’s deeper understanding of the complexities
of the primal wilderness of uplifted rocky summits in Maine and
provides the reader with the pungent aroma of balsam firs, black
spruce, mosses, and ferns as only Thoreau could. This new,
redesigned edition features an insightful foreword by Thoreau
scholar Richard Francis Fleck. Redesigned edition featuring an
insightful foreword by Thoreau scholar Richard Francis Fleck. Fleck
is a well-respected authority on Thoreau and the author of many
books including Henry Thoreau and John Muir Among the Indians.
Henry David Thoreau (July 12, 1817 – May 6, 1862) was an American
author, poet, philosopher, abolitionist, naturalist, tax resister,
development critic, surveyor, historian, and leading
transcendentalist. This book was first published in 1864 (composed
partly of articles he had written earlier for periodicals) and
still in print, is an insightful reporter’s picture of a rugged
wilderness the moment before being irrevocably altered by armies of
loggers. Today the virgin forest seen by Thoreau is gone; trees
have been cut, regrown, and harvested again. But modern travelers
— hikers, campers, hunters, fishers, canoeists or back road
wanderers — will still find, as Thoreau did, a land “more grim
and wild than you had anticipated.” It’s also pin-drop
tranquil, teeming with wildlife and, in places, challenging to
reach. (NYTimes) Following Thoreau into the Maine Woods is hardly a
new idea, but it is becoming easier. The Thoreau-Wabanaki Trail was
inaugurated, delineating and celebrating Thoreau’s passage on
routes that Penobscot Indians had used for thousands of years.
(NYTimes) Nature tourism is a $37 billion annual industry in the
United States (Outdoor Industry Association).
General
Imprint: |
Westwinds Press
|
Country of origin: |
United States |
Release date: |
March 2014 |
Firstpublished: |
February 2014 |
Authors: |
Henry David Thoreau
|
Foreword by: |
Richard F Fleck
|
Dimensions: |
215 x 139 x 13mm (L x W x T) |
Format: |
Paperback
|
Pages: |
244 |
ISBN-13: |
978-0-88240-959-7 |
Categories: |
Books
|
LSN: |
0-88240-959-X |
Barcode: |
9780882409597 |
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