1. Seven centuries before Thoreau, the Japanese philosopher Kamo Chomei conducted a similar experiment by living in a cabin in the woods. His account of this experience, Hojoki, can be compared to Thoreau's Walden. You can find Hojoki in the Norton Anthology of Oriental Literature.

2. Thoreau enjoyed reading religious texts such as the Bhagavad Gita and the Dhammapada, which are Hindu and Buddhist scriptures, respectively. What influence do these sources have on the ideas presented in Walden?

3. Thoreau's Journals, written between 1837 and 1861, contain many ideas that he later developed in books like Walden. Compare the writing style in the Journals to that in Walden. In what ways are they similar or different?

4. Thoreau's first two books, A Week on the Concord and Merrimack Rivers and Walden, both revolve around water, including rivers and ponds. Compare these two books. How is the imagery alike, and how does it differ?

5. Compare the works of modern nature writers like Edward Hoagland or John McPhee to Thoreau's Walden. How do their approaches differ? Do these contemporary books incorporate a philosophy similar to transcendentalism?

6. Compare Annie Dillard's Pulitzer Prize-winning book, Pilgrim at Tinker Creek, to Thoreau's Walden.