Walden, Higher Laws summary
Higher Laws of 19 · 17 min to read the chapter
In Higher Laws, the narrator examines his competing desires for wild experience and spiritual purity, moving from hunting and fishing to food, sobriety, and self-control. He presents restraint as a way to cultivate higher faculties, admits that his conduct falls short of his principles, and closes with John Farmer considering a more disciplined life.
What happens
- An encounter with a woodchuck prompts the narrator to acknowledge both savage impulses and spiritual desires.
- He values hunting as an early education in nature but argues that mature people should outgrow needless killing.
- Fishing leaves him dissatisfied, while preparing animal food strengthens his preference for a simpler diet.
- He praises inward guidance and sobriety while admitting that his own habits do not fully match his beliefs.
- He connects purity with restraint, work, and the shaping of the body through daily conduct.
- After work, John Farmer hears a flute and considers austerity as a path beyond his narrow working life.
Free for 3 months
Get the full summary of Walden, and On The Duty Of Civil Disobedience, free
- 200,000+ classics as eBooks, audiobooks and 15-minute summaries, and print and large print at cost
- Up to 5 readers in your home on one plan
Commencez 90 jours gratuitsNothing to pay today, then 0,27 USD a day
In this chapter
Quick check
What interrupts John Farmer’s thoughts about his work?
Free for 3 months
Get the full summary of Walden, and On The Duty Of Civil Disobedience, free
- 200,000+ classics as eBooks, audiobooks and 15-minute summaries, and print and large print at cost
- Up to 5 readers in your home on one plan
Commencez 90 jours gratuitsNothing to pay today, then 0,27 USD a day
200,000+ classics to read, hear and hold
15-minute summaries today, eBooks and audiobooks as each book opens, and printed books, large print included, at cost.
Try 3 months free
