Henry David Thoreaus Views Of Freedom And Freedom

During the Antebellum Period (1814-1861) in the United States, there were many ideas about freedom and liberty. In the books Voices of Freedom and Liberty of Freedom, the authors explain two main ideas that originated from two groups of people: abolitionists and individualists. These groups impacted and helped shape freedom and liberty. To have a better understanding of the groups and their views on freedom and liberty, we can look at a main leader from each group. For the abolitionist group, we can learn from former-slave Frederick Douglas about what they stand for. Then, for the individualist group we can learn from writer Henry David Thoreau and get an understanding of what they stand for. Even though these two men were a great voice†¦show more content†¦This defined freedom and liberty to him. Henry David Thoreau was an individualist and believed in individual self-reliance. To test this out, he spent three years in isolation living in a cabin at Walden Pond, Concord. Du ring this time, he wrote a book called Walden, which is about his time spent in isolation. After his isolation, he spoke to others about what freedom really is. To him freedom was â€Å"absolute freedom which is found by rejecting market society and retreating into the wilderness†. Doing this, he said, â€Å"†¦is the only way to preserve both individual independence and the natural environment†, as stated in Liberty of Freedom. Later on in his life, he was incarcerated in 1846 for refusing to pay taxes. After he was released from prison, he said, â€Å"†¦under a government that imprisons unjustly, the true place of a just man is also prison.† Thoreau even made a speech called â€Å"Resistance to Civil Government†. He truly believed that the government was the one making freedom and liberty hard to reach. There is a big difference between the two ideas of freedom and liberty. First of all, Douglas’ idea of freedom is from he viewpoint of s omeone who was a slave. So his perspective of freedom is that they should abolish slavery and give black men and women the same rights as white men and women. Since Thoreau didn’tShow MoreRelatedEssay The Incredible Henry David Thoreau1081 Words   |  5 PagesThe value of freedom had yet to be accepted nor granted peacefully. The Revolution released America from the grasp of Britain and it would take yet another war to release the black man from the shackles of slavery. America was still in its infancy; the West was not yet settled, the South was still a confederacy and unity was just a dream. The country was torn by slavery. And some men began to question the integrity of their government. Henry David Thoreau was one such man. 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