“The best thing a man can do for his culture when he is rich is to endeavor to carry out those schemes which he entertained when he was poor. “
Civil Disobedience, p237
“…and I saw that if one stayed there long, his business would to be look at the window.”
Civil Disobedience, p240
I really enjoyed reading Civil Disobedience and decided to focus my last journal on 2 of my favorite quotes/moments in the piece. The first quote struck me because Thoreau emphasized culture. I have always associated money more with the individual spiritual corruption of a person rather than a poison to culture. I completely agree with this section about wealth. I think money complicates things unnecessarily and has a tendency to place people in morals dilemmas that shouldn’t have existed in the first place. The above quote made me question my associations between money and success. The American Dream is marked by a big house, a cushy job, and lots of money to spare. I have been pushed my entire life to eventually reach that goal. But what will lots money actually gives me? The answer to this question, and I believe Thoreau would agree, is nothing but an unsatisfiable greed for more material possessions. However, I believe that Thoreau’s idea of what a rich man can do for his culture may be almost impossible to do now. American society values the flaunting of wealth. Reality television is filled with people who spend too much money for luxurious items or people envious and desperate to get to that wealthy state. The first thing a lotto winner does is usually buy a house, and then most spend it too quickly and left with nothing once again. I agree that a man should continue to live somewhat thriftily and give back when rich, but the temptation is far too great now. America today is a grotesque consumerist society. This puts my life slightly into perspective. I don’t yearn for endless wealth, just happiness and a comfortable enough living where I am no struggling for food. The “endless want” Americans possess has become second nature. Although I was essentially already aware of this, Thoreau has sparked a renewed interest in me to be aware of the corruption I could face.
I found Thoreau’s description of his night in prison very intriguing. I had come accustomed to imagining Thoreau emerged in nature that it was somewhat jarring to imagine him in any other circumstance. After doing the “nothing” exercise I found myself sympathizing with Thoreau and his thoughts regarding the business of window watching. This inspired me to do an experiment. I did not spent 45 minutes just staring out the window and just thinking about my own beliefs and about Thoreau’s writings. I found this much more enjoyable than the “nothing” exercise. My window faces a courtyard with trees and a small pond, so this was actually a very positive experience. I used to be able to see squirrels running through the trees, but unfortunately this is not the time of year for that. To my surprise, I found some sort of peace and it gave me time to actually ponder what Thoreau was saying. Despite his tone of voice, I feel that Thoreau had some good points and values. Although I could never personally reach the level Thoreau did, I’m going to try to separate myself from cultural prison I have allowed myself to be imprisoned by.
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