Comprehension
The questions below refer to the selection “from Walden, or Life in the Woods.”
1. How long did Thoreau live in the woods at Walden Pond?
2. In the section called “Economy,” Thoreau builds a house as a way to live a simple life. What are the various
steps he takes to build this house?
2b. What other activities does he do in order to support his simple lifestyle?
3. In the section called “Where I Lived, and What I Lived For,” what reason does Thoreau give for living in the
woods?
4. In the section called “Where I Lived, and What I Lived For,” what does Thoreau say is his opinion of
progress? What examples does he give to support this?
5. In the section called “Where I Lived, and What I Lived For,” what is Thoreau’s attitude toward individuality
and conformity?
6. In the section called “Solitude,” what comments does Thoreau make about Loneliness? How does he feel
about being by himself?
7. In the section called “The Bean Field,” what are Thoreau’s feelings about working in his bean field? What
steps did he take in tending to his field.
8. In the section called “Brute Neighbors,” what do the ants symbolize? What does he observe about them?
9.In the section called “Conclusion,” what explanation does Thoreau give for leaving Walden pond?
10. With which of the following statements would Thoreau most likely agree?
a. Most people’s lives are too simple.
b. Most people forfeit their lives by doing what society tells them to do.
c. The chief purpose of everyone’s life should be to glorify God.
d. People need to learn to compromise to get along.
11. When Thoreau uses the metaphor, “I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life,” what does he
mean?
12. Which of the following statements is a metaphor?
a. “I left the woods for as good a reason as I went there.”
b. “Time is but the stream I go a-fishing in.”
c. “Shall a man go and hang himself because he belongs to the race of pygmies, and not be
the biggest pygmy that he can?”
d. “Why should we be in such desperate haste to succeed and in such desperate enterprises?”
13. Which statement is the best paraphrase of the following metaphor: “We do not ride on the railroad; it rides
upon us”?
a. People are primitive and need technology to succeed.
b. Life is uncertain; therefore, we must toil to support ourselves.
c. In order to communicate with nature, we must become self-reliant.
d. People are controlled by what they create rather than controlling their creations.
14. Create a sentence that could sum up Thoreau’s philosophy on life.
Vocabulary Development
On the line provided, write the Vocabulary word that best completes each sentence.
pertinent
encumbrance
impervious
temporal
superfluous
15. The hut was so well constructed that it was ____________________ to rain and stayed dry even in fierce
rainstorms.
16. As much as possible, Thoreau disdains the ____________________, or worldly, aspects of civilization and
concentrates on simplicity.
17. Thoreau took only what he needed with him to the woods, leaving ____________________, needless items
behind.
18. Unnecessary objects would just be a(n) ____________________, a burden to him.
19. Thoreau’s point about living simply is especially ____________________ today, when we question how to
conduct a meaningful life.
20. Cite at least two metaphors that Thoreau uses to explain his philosophy of life. On a separate sheet of paper,
write down the metaphor and explain why you think it fits his philosophy.