Henry David Thoreau

Profession: Naturalist and Pacifist

Biography: Henry David Thoreau was an American naturalist and writer that was part of the transcendentalist movement. This movement also included other major figures such as Ralph Waldo Emerson, Walt Whitman, and Margaret Fuller.

Thoreau is best known for his book Walden, which he wrote over the course of two years spent in a cabin he built near Walden Pond in Massachusetts. The work, which has received enduring acclaim, is a reflection upon nature and the character of a simple life in these surroundings.

Alongside Walden, he also wrote a large number of books, articles, essays, journals, and poetry. Of these, the most famous is perhaps his essay Civil Disobedience, in which he argues that the individual has a responsibility to oppose the government rather than acquiesce to injustice.

Born: July 12, 1817
Birthplace: Concord, Massachusetts, USA
Star Sign: Cancer

Died: May 6, 1862 (aged 44)
Cause of Death: Tuberculosis