Free-thought

h**TASK: Week 1**
//“Speak what you think now in hard words, and tomorrow speak what tomorrow thinks in hard words again, though it contradict everything you said today.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson// When Margaret Fuller created the Transcendental magazine //The Dial//, she presented a forum in which Transcendentalists spoke the hard words concerning issues of the day. Today’s free-thought forums can frequently be found in online web logs, or blogs. Your corporation has decided to take a stand on an issue currently facing American culture and speak boldly your thoughts on the issue by designing and maintaining a blog for a week. Start by visiting a local or national newspaper. Locate a headline story from this past weekend’s edition that incites a reaction amongst your corporation members. In your blog, you should write an opinion in support of the issue and an opinion in opposition to the issue, similar to the format of a Supreme Court decision. The more discussion and thinking your blog generates, the better!

Resources: http://www.vcu.edu/engweb/transcendentalism/ideas/dialhistory.html http://www.wikihow.com/Start-a-Blog http://www.blog.com/ https://www.blogger.com/start http://wordpress.com/ http://www.mindsay.com/ http://www.nytimes.com/ http://online.wsj.com/ http://www.post-gazette.com/ [|http://www.pittsburghlive.com] http://www.washingtonpost.com/ http://www.latimes.com/

** TASK: Week 2 **
** Thoreau’s iPod ** // “If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music which he hears, however measured or far away.” – Henry David Thoreau // Had Thoreau undertaken his woodland experiment in 2010, he might have taken an essential component of modern life: an iPod. Walden Media has decided to create a movie based off of //Walden// and has turned to your knowledgeable ecovillage to provide the soundtrack. Your task is to load Thoreau’s iPod with 8-10 songs that would complement the experiences he details in the "Where I Lived and What I Lived For" section of his journal. Convince the executive producers of Walden Media that your song selections are essential to understanding and appreciating Thoreau’s philosophies. __Thyself's task this week!!!__ **Henry David Thoreau's Playlist**

[|Beatles “Here Comes the Sun”] This song by The Beatles embodies Thoreau"s love for nature (and obviously for the sun). The lyrics also remind us of __Walden__ and how the sun comes up from the long winter and melts away all of the ice.

[|Bob Marley “I Shot the Sheriff”] Henry David Thoreau had some complications and disagreements with the law. Although Thoreau never went out and shot anyone, this song sings about how the law enforcers disliked Bob Marley (the singer) because he was different than them. Thoreau had the same problem when he decided not to pay his poll tax.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M9BNoNFKCBI This song speaks directly to Thoreau. The song's message is essentially for everyone to join together to make a change. Thoreau's goal in writing "Civil Disobedience" was to incite people to act together and make a change.
 * USA For Africa “We Are the World” **

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XaI5IRuS2aE Guthrie's song, a classic Transcendental anthem, affirms Thoreau's love of nature. He would have appreciated Guthrie's love of the world around him and his constant appreciation of nature. Guthrie even takes time to stop working and just look around, one of Thoreau's favorite pastimes.
 * Woodie Guthrie “This Land is Your Land” **

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nnpil_pRUiw Thoreau would have loved this classic song! The song is essentially all about being an outsider and not necessarily conforming with popular thoughts, something Thoreau was more than used to in his life, constantly breaking social norms to make obscure points about fairness and right vs. wrong. Thoreau would be the "eggman" or the "walrus" because he was not like everyone else, but he believed what he was doing was right. Koo koo ka choo!
 * Beatles “I am the Walrus” **

[] This song is a perfect example of how Thoreau lived his life. He wanted to live a full life in which he did what he wanted when he wanted. He truly appreciated the simple things in life, just like Otis Redding does when he talks about sitting on the dock of the bay. //"So I'm just gonna sit on the dock of the bay Watching the tide roll away Ooo, I'm sittin' on the dock of the bay Wastin' time"//
 * Otis Redding “Sitting on the Dock of the Bay” **


 * Kimya Dawson “Time to Think”**
 * []**

This song represents Thoreau's time at Walden Pond perfectly. He escaped because he wanted to live a new life, and have time to think about his present and future life. This song talks about how everyone just needs to slow down and take time out of their day to think about what they want, which is exactly what Thoreau did. The song even alludes to Walden Pond. //"lots of time to think, i need more time to think. When they ask me what i've seen i'll say saturn and soliloquies// //walden pond"//

** Charles Bidbin “Tom Bowling” ** __** http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=awp2cmDMiF0 **__

This song, "Tom Bowling" is Thoreau's favorite song. Thoreau often mentioned this song in his journal entries and to the public.

** Jonathan Larson “Everything is Rent” ** ** http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lHhNsJhevRk **

The song "Everything is Rent" was put on Thoreau's play list to represent his issues with money. Thoreau was often considered cheap and was constantly complaining about money and costs. This can also relate to Thoreau and his refusal to pay the poll tax, in which he was jailed.

By Greg, Dan, Kristen, and Lindsey

** TASK: Week 3 **
** Prison Graffiti ** // “I had soon read all the tracts that were left there, and examined where former prisoners had broken out, and where a grate had been sawed off, and heard the of the various occupants of that room; for I found that even here there was a history and a gossip which never circulated beyond the wall of the jail.” – Henry David Thoreau //

Your ecovillage has been hired by Carnegie Museum of Art to reproduce Thoreau’s jail cell wall stories for the current Carnegie International exhibit. Visually present the unique voices and styles of Thoreau’s contemporaries who may have visited the jail cell prior to his sentence.

Peace, Love, Ben Zhang <3
==== Is Prison simple enough for you?

** TASK: Week 4 **
** America ** **Singing** // “I hear // //America// //singing, the varied carols I hear.” – Walt Whitman// Walt Whitman has hired your ecovillage to update his poem “I Hear America Singing” to incorporate elements of American culture in 2010. Carefully study the subject matter, locations, and vocations that he included in his original poem. How has America changed since the late 1800s until today? How can Whitman update the subject matter of his poem? What would stay the same in the poem? Would he even choose the genre of poetry to convey his message today? Present your solution to Walt Whitman. Resources: []

THOREAU PILLOWS
=== In Walt Whitman’s poem “I Hear America Singing”, he makes many different comparisons of average workers in the 1800’s singing their songs as they do their jobs. In order to make the poem more current, we took the original lines (in bold) and underneath put a more current interpretation (in red), substituting in current jobs and roles that people can have in society. We tried not to change too much about the poem because we liked the overall message he was trying to send of average people doing their jobs and singing to pass the time. Whitman’s poem seems to be trying to develop an overall tone of how hardworking America is and how the average person helps in everyday society. For this reason, we believe he would keep this genre of poetry to write his poem. This genre offers readers the idea that a certain concept can be repeated over and over again in order to develop the message he is trying to present. === === In order to make the poem more current, we substituted in jobs such as an architect or a fashion designer to give a more modern approach to the poem. However, we also kept some of the professions either exactly the same, such as the mechanic, or very similar, such as the boatman changing to a captain. When we did these minor changes, we tried to change the job description to be more technological or advanced than the job descriptions Whitman used. Overall, we feel that Whitman's poem has a great use of ideas and creativity in relation to his time period and the transformation from the 19th century ideas into the 21st century ideas makes this poem easy to understand and more modern and exciting for the average reader. ===


 * I hear America singing, the varied carols I hear, **
 * I hear America singing, the varied carols I hear, **
 * Those of mechanics—each one singing his, as it should be, blithe and strong, **
 * Those of mechanics- each one singing, barely being heard over the sound of power tools and blasting music, **
 * The carpenter singing his, as he measures his plank or beam, **
 * The construction worker singing his, as he whistles at the young ladies walking by, **
 * The mason singing his, as he makes ready for work, or leaves off work, **
 * The architect singing his, as he maps out the prints for the new eco-friendly office building, **
 * The boatman singing what belongs to him in his boat—the deckhand singing on the steamboat deck **
 * The captain singing his orders to the crew- the green horn singing as he casts the pots to catch the crab, **
 * The shoemaker singing as he sits on his bench—the hatter singing as he stands, **
 * The fashion designer singing as he sees his creations modeled in Paris, France – the model singing as he does his little turn on the catwalk, **
 * The wood-cutter’s song—the ploughboy’s, on his way in the morning, or at the noon intermission, or at sundown, **
 * The farmer’s song – the tractor driver singing as he directs the heavy machinery in the morning, or at the noon intermission, or at sundown, **
 * The delicious singing of the mother—or of the young wife at work—or of the girl sewing or washing, **
 * The delicious singing of the mother – or of the young maid hired to keep the house tidy – or of the daughter being introduced to responsibility in the house, **
 * Each singing what belongs to him or her, and to none else, **
 * Each singing what belongs to him or her, and to none else, **
 * The day what belongs to the day—at night, the party of young fellows, robust, friendly, **
 * The day what belongs to the day – At night, the party of young college boys, wild, intoxicated, **
 * Singing, with open mouths, their strong melodious songs. **
 * Singing, with open mouths and headphones in their ears, their strong melodious songs. **