ic necessities of life: clothing shelter, and food. (Thoreau, 1778-1781) All these things he generated with the direct help and strength of the land. He grows his own food and builds a house out of natural elements from the forest. It is the strength of the earth that allows him to rely solely on the terrain. The earth has given him the opportunity to grow crops, use trees for his shanty, and hunt small animals. The main theme in Walden that deals with the strength of Antaeus comes from the following quote: They [the beans] attached me to the earth, and so I got strength like Antaeus. By working the land, Thoreau has felt the strength of the earth. He now feels the power that can come from the depths of the planet. The beans are use as a paradigm for basing all the strength, power, and good deeds of the world upon. Thoreau states that because he has become one with the earth, he can now feel the strength and prowess that the earth possesses. This is similar to the story of Antaeus in several ways. Antaeus cannot leave the ground, for if he does, he will soon loose all strength and wither away, which also holds true for the bean plants. If they were to be uprooted, they would soon wither away and become inedible. In other words, without the roots planted firm into the earth, they will die. Thoreau feels the power of the earth- the power that gives life to both the bean plants and indirectly to his body. The strength of his life has been made possible by the earths powers. The life in us is like the water in the river. (Thoreau, 1942) Thoreau uses this in his conclusion of Walden. It not only sums up his work, but it also ties in and concludes the myth of Antaeus. The life in us is what we know, experience, and learn. The river is to the earth as humans are to the earth. Constantly flowing, constantly making contact with the earth, and constantly growing in speed and force as it heads to an ultimate end. Life is like...
