NOTE:  Read the whole piece, please, but pay special attention to the first few pages (roughly 593-603) and the last sections (637-655).

1)  Think about the shape of this narrative.  Where is its climax (careful, critics don’t agree on this)?  by what stages does he arrive there?  describe the denouement.  Does this story match or parallel any standard  story forms?

2)  Compare this story to those of Boone, Bartram, and Kirkland in generic terms.  What formal model(s) does each follow?

3)  Boone’s story took on mythic standing in US culture.  Kirkland’s and Bartram’s did not.  What about this story of Thoreau’s?  Does it claim mythic stature?

4)  "Ktaadn" was published in a popular magazine, the "Union" (whose first editor had been Catherine Kirkland).  What different things do you think he wanted the general reader to take away from it?

5)  What is the machine in this garden?  What are its effects?

6)  How well does each of the following terms fit Thoreau in this work?  explorer, pioneer, adventurer, scientist, tourist, sportsman, others you can think of.

7)  Read the descriptions of Thoreau’s two ascents very carefully.  How are these experiences different for him from the rest of his journey?  What Biblical and mythic stories does he refer to?  To what effect?

8)  The paragraph on pp. 645-6 is one of the most frequently discussed in all of his works.  Why?  What does her say in it about the relation between humans and the natural world?