Chapter 12, Brute Neighbors

In chapter 12 of Thoreau's Walden it is surprisig to see a different side of Thoreau in his writing than what would usually be expected from him. His tone is not of arrogance and blunt anger, but we see his compassionate side with his love of nature, which seems like is the only thing that he felt did not let him down. "It is remarkable how many creatures live wild and free though secret in the woods, and still sustain themselves in the neighborhood of towns, suspected by hunters only" (Thoreau 11). He exposes his respect that he has for nature, and by doing this exposes what he spent his time in solidtude from society, which was observe nature and the many creatures he encountered. "For hours, in fall days, I watched the ducks cunningly tack and veer and hold the middle of the pond, far from the sportsman; tricks which they will have less need to practise in Louisiana bayous" (Thoreau 18) The way in which he observed animals was if he were observing people. Each account that he throughout this chapter he personified animals as if they were actually human begings. In a way by doing so he shows the nature of man, especially with the war of the ants. "Having once got hold they never let go, but struggled and wrestled and rolled on the chips incessantly. Looking farther, I was surprised to find that the chips were covered with such combatants, that it was not a duellum, but a bellum,(5) a war between two races of ants, the red always pitted against the black, and frequently two red ones to one black" (Thoreau 12). The way Thoreua depicted the brutality of the ants and how savagishly they fought gave to mind that the ways of the wars of men are also just at savage and brutal. Man slaughting man. This brutality present in this ant war that Thoreau depicts gives a reason to the chapter's title, "Brute Neighbors." Although he depicts relationships of animals and how they reacted to the encounter of him, he relates it to not being very different from the way that humans interact with one another, which puts down the civility of men, showing that we are acting just as wild animals would. "It was evident that their battle-cry was "Conquer or die"' (Thoreau 12). This betrayal of men comes with the purpose to expose how event happen in nature and how men has not seperated themselves above that.