Skip to main content

Secondary sourceBook1890

Thoreau's Thoughts

Henry David Thoreau · 1890

A 1890 selection of passages from Thoreau's writings, with a bibliography of his works. It gathers his own words for readers who want a short introduction.

Shows how Thoreau's own words were gathered and presented to readers in the years after his death.

Ask Henry David Thoreau about this sourceView the original(opens in new tab)
Thoreau's ThoughtsPDF · 174 pages
Henry David Thoreau, Thoreau's Thoughts: selections from his writings, 1890. Internet Archive scan.

About this source

What it is

This is an 1890 printed book titled Thoreau's Thoughts, made of selected passages from the writings of Henry David Thoreau. The scanned pages include a list of Thoreau's books, such as Walden, A Week on the Concord and Merrimack Rivers, Cape Cod and The Maine Woods, and a bibliography of his works on pages 125 to 146. The copy described here is a scanned PDF from the Internet Archive.

Why it matters

A book of selections shows which passages an editor thought worth keeping. In 1890, readers were already collecting Thoreau's ideas on nature, life and reading, after his death in 1862. The book also includes the bibliography, which helped readers find the full works. It tells us about the readers of the time and about the people who chose and printed Thoreau's sentences.

Look closer

  • Which passages were chosen, and what idea does each one seem to teach?
  • What does the publisher's list of Thoreau's books tell you about how his work was sold and read?
  • What would a reader miss by reading only short selections instead of the complete books?

This book is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Henry David Thoreau on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

More Henry David Thoreau sources

Meet the AI Henry David Thoreau →
Title page of the 1854 first edition of Walden; or, Life in the Woods by Henry D. Thoreau, with an engraving of a small cabin among pine and deciduous trees, an epigraph, and the publisher Ticknor and Fields, Boston.Book

Primary source

Walden

Henry David Thoreau · 1854

Scanned printed page 189 from 1849 Aesthetic Papers, headed 'Art. X. Resistance to Civil Government' with running head 'Resistance to Civil Government.' Body text is an essay opening: 'I heartily accept the motto, That government is best which governs least.' The page is dense serif text in two columns of prose, with no images.Book

Primary source

Civil Disobedience

Henry David Thoreau · 1849

Sepia-toned black-and-white portrait of a bearded man with tousled dark hair, wearing a dark jacket, bow tie, and white collar, against a plain gray-brown background. He gazes directly at the camera with a serious expression.Photograph

Primary source

Daguerreotype Portrait of Henry David Thoreau

Benjamin D. Maxham · 18 June 1856

Speech

Primary source

Slavery in Massachusetts

Henry David Thoreau · 4 July 1854

Speech

Primary source

A Plea for Captain John Brown

Henry David Thoreau · 30 October 1859

Ready when you are

Start chatting with Henry David Thoreau now.

20 messages free · No credit card · Available in 50+ languages.

Trial Humy for freeGet a quote for institutions