First, Throeau uses wild and religious imagery to juxtapose the city, human culture, with the Nature that he claims to be pure. In the introduction to the text, Thoreau describes Nature as having "absolute freedom, and wildness, as contrasted with a freedom and culture merely civil" (71). Right away, Thoreau makes it clear that the society of man differs from the society in Nature. The Nature being described lies untouched and uncorrupted by man unlike the nature created by humans which remains "tame and cheap" (80). According to Thoreau, every time man upsets Nature, its value depreciates. The idea of man made nature disgusts Thoreau so greatly that he would rather reside in the "Dismal Swamp", then "dwell in the neighborhood of the most beautiful garden that ever human art contrived" (99). For a man to

prefer the doldrums of the swamp than the beauty of a spring garden, truly exemplifies the contempt Thoreau has for unnatural Nature. As Thoreau "saunters" through Nature, he gathers his thoughts and becomes immersed in the scenery. In the city, where people are driven by the forces of greed and ambition, nothing is real, and one can not truly be himself. The wildness that Thoreau refers to "is the preservation of the world," (95) and "Cities import it at any price" (95). This personification of a "wild" force clearly exemplifies how man can lose oneself in Nature. Obviously Thoreau believes that the city lacks "wildness", therefore, making it an inferior place to Nature. People who let the "wild" control them are being true to their aspirations in life, because they let Nature take them on their proper path. Thoreau states how "the trapper's coat emits the odor of musquash," (96) which to him "is a sweeter scent than that which commonly exhales from the merchant's or the scholar's garments" (96). A merchant and scholar, common city people, reek of the city culture where people control each other. In Nature, everyone moves on their own unattached to everything except the landscape surrounding them. According to Thoreau, eventually the wild will conquer over the created. He claims that "the founders of every state which has risen to eminence have drawn their nourishment and vigor from a similar wild source" (95). Nature doesn't choose people, people choose Nature by embracing its effervescent qualities. Thoreau wants everyone to feel Nature's force.

Aside from epitomizing Nature as an escape from the city, Thoreau utilizes imagery to illustrate Nature as a place of thought. While immersed in Nature, man can think on his own without letting collective thinking influence his decisions. Thoreau feels that "there is something in the mountain-air that feeds the spirit and inspires" (91). In effect, "climate does thus react on man," (

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Approximate Word count = 1320
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)