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Henry David Thoreau, a Transcendentalist, believed that individuals should be self-reliant and live a simple life. Thoreau feels that people are conforming to prescribed norms and losing autonomy. His belief in individualism leads him to Walden Pond and breeds his collection of essays, "Walden." Published in 1854, the book chronicles his journey to seclusion and his attitudes about the lack of individualism around him. The section entitled "Economy" is a castigation of society as he saw it.

Thoreau points out how men are losing their humanity. He states that they work at unfulfilling jobs just to get by day by day. Instead of being viewed as individuals, humans have "no time to be anything but a machine." By stating that men are no better than machines, he points to the mediocrity of life. Machines are tools utilized to accomplish a task. Nevertheless, autonomy is replaced by productivity.

Furthermore, Thoreau views inheriting material things as a means by which individuality is lost. He feels sorry for these people because of their lack of vision. He says, "I see young menwhose misfortune it is to have inherited farmsfor these are more easily acquired than got rid of." By saying that these possessions are hard to get rid of, he points out the difficulty of letting go and holding on the past. In Thoreau's eyes, inheritance equals lack of individuality.

Thoreau criticizes public opinion because it robs people of the choice as to how they wish to be viewed. He says opinions hamper autonomy. Public opinion is a weak tyrant compared with our own private opinion. What a man thinks of himself, that it is which determines, or rather indicates, his fate." This quote indicates the importance of a person's opinion of himself rather than what others think. Thoreau says what a person thinks of himself is a better indicator of life's outcome.

The elderly possess wisdom as a result of life experience; however, Thoreau writes that what they say is not important. He says that "the old have no very important advice to give the young, their own experience has been so partialHere is life, an experiment to a great extent untried by me." Thoreau considers the uniqueness of each person's life experience, so advice from older people has no bearing on personal experience. Life is an experiment. Subsequently, individualism means rejecting the conventional wisdom of the aged.

Thoreau not only rejects the wisdom of the elderly; he even rejects the ideals of youth. He says that this is flawed, as well. He says, "Every generation laughs at the old fashions, but follows religiously the new." Young people generally try forming ideas that conflict with their elders. In an attempt to rebel, they construct their own world view. However, Thoreau reveals that following new ideals does not foster individualism. In contrast, the young still conform to someone else's ideals.

Yet, people can change, even if they've spent their lives living by someone else's rules. He says, "It is never too late to give up our prejudices." Change is hard when it is in opposition to those in your community. But, in order to attain individual identities, it is important to let go of established institutions.

Thoreau tries living according to his ideals of individualism, even escaping from society. His life reveals his constant attempt to buck the system. Although his words are more than 100-years-old, they still resonate in our society of conformity.

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