3。 The Critique of Industrialization 

Walden preaches simplicity, which is, to some extent, a criticism of the materialistic way of life in the American capitalist process。 However, in the process of rapid industrialization of the United States, people regarded wealth as a symbol of success, which induced people's desire for the accumulation of wealth。 In the pursuit of wealth, people exploited nature, affecting the harmonious relationship between man and nature。 This criticism is manifested primarily in the critique of the dominance of mankind on nature and the constant seizure of nature。

3。1 Challenging human dominance over nature论文网

Since mankind evolved from the ancient apes, they had become the most favored leader in nature。 The traditional anthropocentrism advocates that all things in nature are human beings and that promotes the so-called ‘people conquer nature’ thinking which presents that human beings in nature are superior, invincible in nature。 Basically, anthropocentrism is a kind of value theory about the relationship between human and non-human beings。 It includes two aspects: one is affirming the status, value and benefit of mankind, believing that human status, value and interest are higher than any other things in the world; the second is the establishment of the value judging standard, that only man can make judgments on all things (people are the subject of value judgments, or as Kant said - people are ‘natural legislators’(Muller 136)), The standard of judgment is the benefit and harm to mankind (man is the measure of all things)。

Buell has a short but figurative definition of anthropocentrism: “the hypothesis or view that human interest is higher than non-human interests (Buell future 134)”。 However, the whole nature is originally organic, with its own direction of the movement。 All things in nature  also closely related to each other, from the sun and the moon, stars, wind and rain, lightning, mountains, rivers, forests, the earth to all the living animals, including humans, plants, micro-organisms, are an indispensable part of the unity。

Thoreau is the greatest ecological writer of the Romantic era。 He does not agree with the anthropocentric treatment of nature, and he is strongly opposed to interfere with nature and rule of nature by virtue of science and technology。 His Walden and other works “show people a natural existence outside human beings, which is the most important existence, beyond the existence of any human member” (Buell environmental 209)。 Thoreau believed that the existence of human existence is of great significance。 He sometimes simply used the “wilderness” to describe that existence, and said “only in the wilderness to protect the world。” Like all Romantic writers, Thoreau highlights the need for humankind to worship nature, a natural worship on a higher ladder that can not only save nature but also save mankind itself。 If someone can reach the height of the true worship of trees and stones, it means that there is a newborn of mankind。

In Walden, Thoreau was anxious about people’s invasion and plunder of nature at that time。 The development of science and technology, the improvement and improvement of production tools, the degree of development and utilization of nature were getting deeper and deeper, and people enjoyed the material convenience at the expense of the environment and the consumption of natural resources。 They were no longer full of awe of nature, but separated themselves from nature, becoming the master of nature。 Conquering, plundering nature became the theme of the times。 In the “Flowering Tree” Heidegger talked about the destruction of the natural ecology: “when people are confined to the technical framework, only from the technical point of view to look at all the natural things, the world is only seen as the production of raw materials, it would mean a complete destruction and destruction of the natural environment。”