Walden

by Henry David Thoreau

Walden: Genre 1 key example

Genre
Explanation and Analysis—Philosophical Memoir :

Walden belongs to two genres: memoir and philosophy. It can be called a memoir because it chronicles two years and two months of Thoreau's personal history. The alternative definition of memoir—an essay on a learned subject—also applies to each chapter of Walden. All parts of the work derive from Thoreau's personal experience. Every chapter provides a detailed explanation of one aspect of life on Walden Pond. All details included are factual, despite a few moments of exaggeration or hyperbole, and the book seems quite rigidly organized.