3,409 Quotes by Henry David Thoreau

It behooves every man to see that his influence is on the side of justice, and let the courts make their own characters.

As for doing good; that is one of the professions which is full. Moreover I have tried it fairly and, strange as it may seem, am satisfied that it does not agree with my constitution.

I left the woods for as good a reason as I went there. Perhaps it seemed to me that I had several more lives to live, and could not spare any more time for that one.

A kitten is so flexible that she is almost double; the hind parts are equivalent to another kitten with which the forepart plays. She does not discover that her tail belongs to her until you tread on it.

In the long run, we only hit what we aim at.

But they who are unconcerned about the consequences of their actions are not therefore unconcerned about their actions.

Renew thyself completely each day.

If... the machine of government... is of such a nature that it requires you to be the agent of injustice to another, then, I say, break the law.

The life of a good man will hardly improve us more than the life of a freebooter, for the inevitable laws appear as plainly in theinfringement as in the observance, and our lives are sustained by a nearly equal expense of virtue of some kind. The decaying tree, while yet it lives, demands sun, wind, and rain no less than the green one. It secretes sap and performs the functions of health. If we choose, we may study the alburnum only. The gnarled stump has as tender a bud as the sapling.