When I think of the gold-diggers and the Mormons, the slaves and the slave-holders and the flibustiers, I naturally dream of a glorious private life. No, I am not patriotic.
Henry David ThoreauNature would not appear so rich, the profusion so rich, if we knew a use for everything.
Henry David ThoreauI am engaged to Concord and my own private pursuits by 10,000 ties, and it would be suicide to rend them.
Henry David ThoreauThe front aspect of great thoughts can only be enjoyed by those who stand on the side whence they arrive.
Henry David ThoreauThe mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation. What is called resignation is confirmed desperation. From the desperate city you go into the desperate country, and have to console yourself with the bravery of minks and muskrats. A stereotyped but unconscious despair is concealed even under what are called the games and amusements of mankind. There is no play in them, for this comes after work. But it is a characteristic of wisdom not to do desperate things.
Henry David Thoreau