Henry David Thoreau's Description Of A Loon

One of the most if not the most important factors to consider when writing your autobiography is relevance to the reader, or will the reader care about a particular story or sentiment you’re writing about. Failure to consider what the reader cares about has historically been the bane of many aspiring writers attempting to construct a quality autobiography. Let’s look at two case studies from Henry David Thoreau’s Walden, to demonstrate what to do, what not to do, and how to determine relevance to the reader.

The two different instances are Thoreau’s description of an ant war and that of a loon. The story of the ant war is interesting and even gripping; it is possibly the best part of Walden. The description of the loon is at best rather dull,