01-27-2011, 07:17 PM
It is a good quote indeed and has been a favorite of mine for some time. However, there is some debate over the true source of the quote. The closest thing found in Thoreau's writings is this from 1853:
"It is remarkable that many men will go with eagerness to Walden Pond in the winter to fish for pickerel and yet not seem to care for the landscape. Of course it cannot be merely for the pickerel they may catch; there is some adventrue in it; but any love of nature which they may feel is certainly slight and indefinite. They call it going a-fishing, and so indeed it is, though perchance, their natures know better. Now I go a-fishing and a-hunting every day, but omit the fish and the game, which are the least important part."
As a transcendentialist, Thoreau seems to advocate enjoyment of nature for its purely intrinsic, spiritual value rather than for what man can extract from it for pleasure or hobby.
[b][i][/i][/b]
[signature]
"It is remarkable that many men will go with eagerness to Walden Pond in the winter to fish for pickerel and yet not seem to care for the landscape. Of course it cannot be merely for the pickerel they may catch; there is some adventrue in it; but any love of nature which they may feel is certainly slight and indefinite. They call it going a-fishing, and so indeed it is, though perchance, their natures know better. Now I go a-fishing and a-hunting every day, but omit the fish and the game, which are the least important part."
As a transcendentialist, Thoreau seems to advocate enjoyment of nature for its purely intrinsic, spiritual value rather than for what man can extract from it for pleasure or hobby.
[b][i][/i][/b]
[signature]