A Wider View of the Universe: Henry Thoreau's Study of Nature, Revised Edition

by Robert Kuhn McGregor

Overview

Thoreau in his early career did not consider nature a worthy subject for his pen. Beginning with only a superficial knowledge of nature--even while living at Walden Pond--he later began to study the subject more intensely in 1849. Over the next dozen years, he applied himself especially to botany and ornithology, seeking to integrate knowledge into the larger patterns of life.

Independently deriving what today would be considered an ecological worldview, Thoreau devoted the last years of his writing career to nature studies, written in his own distinctive voice.

In this revised edition of a standard study of Thoreau and nature, the author traces the origins and development of Thoreau's shift in viewpoint and his painstaking efforts thereafter.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781476668970
Publisher:	McFarland & Company, Incorporated Publishers
Publication date:	05/22/2017
Edition description:	Revised
Pages:	232
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.90(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Robert Kuhn McGregor, professor emeritus of history at the University of Illinois-Springfield, taught environmental history, early American history, and the history of popular culture, including baseball. He lives in Spencerport, New York.

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments
Preface to the New Edition
Introduction
1. Concord
2. Waldo and Henry
3. The Pond and the Mountain
4. Absorbing Nature
5. The River
6. Investigating Nature
7. A Vision of Nature
Appendix: Henry Thoreau’s Writing Projects, 1837–1849
Chapter Notes
Index