Help please - American Authors

[Chrisy Moltisanti]

Ok I'm trying to remember the name of a well known, American I believe, author. He went nuts late in his life, living in isolation in an unpopulated woodsy area near upstate New York and Canada. He may have committed suicide, but I could be confusing that part with Hemingway. I believe he would have been alive and about 30-40 in 1900ish.

[Dan Lambskin]

Henry David Therou (sp?)...probably not, i just remember that Walden thing

[Chrisy Moltisanti]

.. hmm I don't know if it's him... the connection to Harvard is another clue. One HDT has... I'm looking for a particular commencement speech... it's not Emerson.

In 1859, following a late night excursion to count the rings of tree stumps during a rain storm, he became ill with bronchitis. His health declined over three years with brief periods of remission, until he eventually became bedridden. Recognizing the terminal nature of his disease, Thoreau spent his last years revising and editing his unpublished works, particularly Excursions and The Maine Woods and petitioning publishers to print revised editions of A Week and Walden. He also wrote letters and journal entries until he became too weak to continue. His friends were alarmed at his diminished appearance and fascinated by his tranquil acceptance of death. When his aunt Louisa asked him in his last weeks if he had made his peace with God, Thoreau responded quite simply: “I did not know we had ever quarreled.” He died on May 6, 1862 at the age of 44.[citation needed]

Hm, I think it is him, but the interpretation of the end of his life given to me was much different from what I'm reading from less biased sources.

Henry David Thoreau moved to a small hut by Walden Pond 160 years ago today. Wishing to lead a life free of materialistic pursuits, he supported himself by growing vegetables and by doing odd jobs in the nearby village. He lived there alone for two years, spending most of his time observing nature, reading, and writing, and he kept a detailed journal of his observations, activities, and thoughts. His journal was published as Walden, or a Life in the Woods in 1854.

[JRM4833]

Try this list of famous suicides.