Thoreau’s family loved music~ remember he sang, danced, played the flute, and built at least one wind harp. He uses the word sound 456 times in his Journals, including an 1838 “SCRAPS FROM AN ESSAY ON ‘SOUND AND SILENCE’ ”. Still, why include a chapter on sounds as part of the necessities of life and living in the woods?
First, I see it as an extension of the reading chapter. Experiencing sounds is another way of learning, finding meaning, and being conscious in the world. Sounds tether us to the present moment, take us deeper into the experience of living deliberately:
What is a course of history or philosophy, or poetry, no matter how well selected, or the best society, or the most admirable routine of life, compared with the discipline of looking always at what is to be seen? Will you be a reader, a student merely, or a seer? Read your fate, see what is before you, and walk on into futurity.
What matters is being present for whatever the day offers. Books can wait. The weeds won’t. The sounds of the woods are always present, providing that tether to see what is before you. This theme also marks a shift in the narrative, where Thoreau weaves together more details of his experience living in the woods with his contemplations. Yes, we can certainly call them digressions, which he even jokes about, “But the bells rings, and I must get off the track…”
It turns out, the woods is not a quiet place. Remember, the Fitchburg railroad line lies nearby, also providing a direct walking path to town. You might have imagined our young writer longing for quiet solitude would find the train an annoyance. Rather, the opposite. Remember, Thoreau the pencil innovator and surveyor might have been an engineer in another time.
His descriptions of the train are soaked in poetic imagery. He personifies the whistle by giving it proclamations, brings the train alive as an iron horse, and compares the cars to cosmic movement. He admires how commerce and the keeping of time are improved. We cannot underestimate the influence of railroads on human culture. The Thoreau we imagine as a keeper of nature admired this ‘progress.’ Rather than having this as a source of confusion, see if you can allow it to add nuance and depth.
The remainder of the chapter expands on the sounds we might expect: town bells, cows, birds, frogs, wagons on the road, roosters, and even…the trees.
Consider, in this chapter, how you experience your everyday world. What are the tethers that ground you to this life. Perhaps here find ways to appreciate and admire whatever is present.