Kevin-Time of day versus season
“The phenomena of the year take place every day in a pond on a small scale. Every morning, generally speaking, the shallow water is being warmed more rapidly than the deep, though it may not be made so warm after all, and every evening it is being cooled more rapidly until the morning. The day is the epitome of the year. The night is the winter, the morning and evening are the spring and fall, and the noon is the summer” (291).
Throughout not only this chapter but really the entirety of Walden Thoreau is constantly writing about and meditating on the concept of time. The chapter “Spring” obviously also touches on the subject, the season itself being a sort of temporal space of transition between the extremes of Winter and Summer which bookend it. This chapter Thoreau finds himself discussing many subjects aside from time, from sand and grass to the many animal sounds found as spring is being sprung. Time in this chapter seems to exist in mostly two ways for Thoreau, there is time as it relates to the seasons of the year and time as it relates to periods throughout the day. For Thoreau, there is almost a link or connection between the rise and fall of the seasons and the rise and fall of the sun. This first passage focuses on exactly that, the link between the seasons and the day, Thoreau’s ruminations on time seem to always circle back to these two concepts. James has already mentioned this passage and done a close reading of it from the focus of poetics, but this passage also serves as the most prolific observation on time that Thoreau has in perhaps the entire chapter. There is a sense of completion in both the day bookended by the rising and setting sun, and this completion or harmony is felt on a grander scale as throughout the calendar year, this harmony possibly being a mirror to the natural harmony that Thoreau is so enveloped in during his stay in Walden.
“Many of the phenomena of Winter are suggestive of an inexpressible tenderness and fragile delicacy. We are accustomed to hear this king described as a rude and boisterous tyrant; but with the gentleness of a lover he adorns the tresses of Summer.” (299).
Thoreau refers to time and the seasons with both immense respect and familiarity. Personification is an interesting aspect of Thoreau’s writing, his observations of the wildlife and environment being written by someone with such a strong sense of belonging, Walden is Thoreau’s habitat, his world. Or at least as much as possible, still there being that inescapable separation from Thoreau’s real world and the one he so wishes to belong. Rejecting his world, where Winter is often villainized, characterized as a “rude tyrant” meant to be both respected and feared, yet Thoreau begins by opposing this. Winter for Thoreau is tender and delicate, as well as a harbinger of the beauty which follows as the days lengthen. The dynamic between the seasons in this passage is almost a romantic one, Winter being the gentle lover, and through his slow thaw his withdrawal making possible the arrival of his most beloved Summer. Although Thoreau is not always the kindest writer when describing Winter, observing it as both a delicate and tender period as well as the cold, dark counterpart to Spring’s light and life reveals Thoreau’s intense familiarity and awareness not only of the season’s but also of how they interact in the larger scale to form the ecosystem which he has become so enthralled with recording.
“The change from storm and winter to serene and mild weather, from dark and sluggish hours to bright and elastic ones, is a memorable crisis which all things proclaim. It is seemingly instantaneous at last. Suddenly an influx of light filled my house, though the evening was at hand, and the clouds of winter still overhung it, and the eaves were dripping with sleety rain.” (301).
Spring for Thoreau is a time of intense rebirth and noise, with references to the cracking of the pond ice as it shifts, gradually adding noise throughout the chapter until there are the sounds of animals and birds and rain and geese and all the sounds which signal the end of night and beginning of day. This soundscape is almost like Earth’s alarm clock, reminding it to awake and begin dusting itself off for the long, hot day it has planned ahead. This new day not only begins with these lovely sounds, it also comes as a contrast to the less than peaceful winter which directly preceded it. The rapid shift is a welcome one, but it does not come without major changes, Thoreau claiming its arrival is heralded by “all things” and then proceeds to paint a picture of all those warning signs ringing, a chorus of alarm clocks ringing in tune with one another.
“We loiter in winter while it is already spring. In a pleasant spring morning all men’s sins are forgiven. Such a day is a truce to vice. While such a sun holds out to burn, the vilest sinner may return.” (303).
The rebirth or Spring is not one that Thoreau only attributes to the plants and animals, but to all living things, Spring for people is a chance to start again, an end of one chapter and beginning of the next. Thoreau himself even uses Spring as a new page in his life with this Walden experiment in itself, coming first to Walden in the Spring of 1845. This new beginning is not only a personal and or social beginning, but also a spiritual one for Thoreau. He writes,. Not only does Thorea make a direct allusion to a well known book of hymns, he also relates spring and winter to the concept of sin, with Winter being the birthplace of sin and Spring being the confession which cleanses the soul. “We loiter in winter while it is already Spring” refers to the idea of ignorance and sin having the ability to keep us from the beauty of God’s forgiveness and grace, and the beauty of his mercy and love’s closest real world equivalent in Thoreau’s eyes is Spring; the rebirth and new world which rises from the cold, dead one which reigned throughout the night.
TIME AND SEASON CONCLUSION:
Thoreau spends much of his time in “Spring” ruminating on the concept of time, not only how it passes and what effects its passage has on the environment, but how it chooses to even present itself. The distinction between time of day and time of year is one Thoreau seems fascinated with, possibly comparing his daily occurrences and activities to his larger annual ones while staying at Walden. Thoreau’s main source of inspiration is observation, the natural surroundings time and time again proving a sufficient barometer for him to measure time’s effects.
The effects of time are of Thoreau’s concern, but almost more important is the passage of seasons in more broad, and Winter for Thoreau is a time of great contradiction and confusion. Thoreau seems to at first refer to Winter as a delicate and even tender time, liking it to even a lover: ““Many of the phenomena of Winter are suggestive of an inexpressible tenderness and fragile delicacy...with the gentleness of a lover he adorns the tresses of Summer.” (Thoreau 299). However, Thoreau seems to just later retreat from this just moments later when he uses Winter to oppose Spring as the darkness preceding the light, a metaphor for an almost spiritual rebirth and reawakening tied to Spring. This is clearly a reflection of the strong religious ideologies which permeated Thoreau’s era so strongly that in a place such as Walden one would not escape it, instead Walden seems to offer Thoreau a spiritual refuge in order to become as close as he can to what he believes is God’s creation at its purest. This connection offers a forgiveness of sin and opportunities beyond the darkness of winter, a place of sin and confusion itself: ““We loiter in winter while it is already spring. In a pleasant spring morning all men’s sins are forgiven.” (303). Winter not only seems to be a time of sin for Thoreau it also seems to be a temptation, the slow, dark days beings so suffocating that even when forgiveness and warmth begin to make themselves known it is difficult to move forward, the honesty in order to acknowledge and atone for one’s own sins too difficult after such a time.
Thoreau is most definitely a poet, all of these observations being written eloquently and with a rhythm that no one would deny. Yet, above this Thoreau is a philosopher, allowing his mind to wander endlessly and ruminate on seemingly anything he can and will observe. Most of his ruminations also pertain to time because of how many symptoms of its passage are manifest as the season’s change. Thoreau’s wisdom and insight is sharp, and this allows him to make some not only valuable insights on the seasons, but more importantly relate their passage and connections in such a way that accurately paints the harmony between all of the natural world’s mechanisms at all times.
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