Henry David Thoreau in Walden, and Stephen Crane in Maggie: A Girl Of The Streets,

disagree in their opinions of how far one can be self-reliant, how one’s life is
determined, and how to live a moral life. Thoreau writes Walden in 1854 to answer
the questions people have had about his life. The book speaks much about self-
reliance. Walden tells of a life outside of society. Stephen Crane tells the story of a
girl broken by society in Maggie: A Girl of The Streets. He writes this story to speak
of the fate that some are born into. Maggie, a girl who lives in the tenements of New
York in the late 19th century, lives in a dysfunctional family and is forced to leave.
After her boyfriend leaves her, Maggie is forced into prostitution. As Maggie reaches
the end of her life, she feels a deep emptiness inside of her. This emptiness is the
feeling that drives her to commit suicide. Throughout the story, the reader is left to
understand the joys and struggles of a poor girl on the streets.

Thoreau and Crane would disagree on how much one can be self-reliant. Thoreau
believes that relying on others is something that can only be done at the beginning
of one’s journey. While describing his trip to create his lodge, he writes “I took down
this dwelling the same morning, drawing the nails, and removed it to the pond-side
by small cartloads, spreading the boards on the grass there to bleach and warp back
again in the sun” (38). Thoreau gets the house from a neighbor of his so he can start
his journey. However, once he gets the house, he takes it down and creates his own
house. Thoreau wants to show the reader that they must rely on themselves to
create a life. Crane, however, believes that it is impossible to succeed without the
help of others. Crane writes “Maggie, with side glances of fear of interruption, ate
like a small pursued tigress” (12). When there is no one to look after Maggie, she is
very vulnerable. She has to turn to prostitution, and she doesn’t find happiness.
Crane exemplifies his argument throughout the story, showing Maggie’s happiest
moments when she is with Pete. While Pete and Maggie are together, they go to
dinner, watch theatrical shows, and spend time together. Maggie has a happy life
and is proud of where she is. Later, Pete leaves Maggie, and this is where Maggie
begins to deteriorate. At the end of the story, after Pete leaves Maggie, she enters a
state of depression. Crane shows the reader that having someone to look after them
is important to succeed. While Thoreau wants to show that self-reliance is
important at its core, Crane shows that one cannot live a happy life without
someone to guide them.

Henry David Thoreau and Stephen Crane would also disagree on how much one can
control their life. Thoreau believes that one can choose how they want to live their
life. He believes that each person makes a choice. It is not fate, but a conscious
decision to live in a certain way. Thoreau writes “I went to the woods because I
wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could
not learn what it had to teach, and not when I came to die, discover that I had not
lived” (74). Thoreau wants to show the reader that one can choose the way that they
live. Crane has a different opinion than Thoreau. Crane believes that life is
controlled by fate. Throughout the story, Crane describes the issues that Maggie has
to undergo, and how many of the issues are things that Maggie cannot do a thing
about. Crane writes about how Maggie faces several problems after Pete leaves her.
Crane writes “Maggie was dazed. She could barely perceive that something
stupendous had just happened” (68). Maggie cannot do anything about Pete leaving
her, and must try and survive with no one to help her. This idea continues
throughout the entire story, with multiple characters going through the same thing.
For example, at the beginning of the story, Jimmie must try and live his life without
parents who care for him. He must turn to fighting to be safe on the streets, and an
old woman across the hall is the closest thing he has to a caretaker. Thoreau and
Crane disagree on how much fate controls life, and on how much one can decide
their fate.

Thoreau and Crane also have differing morals. Thoreau has a moral that centers
around the idea that it is okay for people to care what others are doing, but that they
should not enter themselves into another person’s life. Thoreau shows these morals
throughout his reflection and wants the reader to believe in the same morals.
Thoreau writes “It is difficult to begin without borrowing, but perhaps it is the most
generous course thus to permit your fellow-men to have an interest in your
enterprise” (35-36). This idea is shown in every idea he writes about, and Thoreau
understands that people take an interest in others. While Thoreau is working on his
house, he is able to buy the foundation of a house from a neighbor. Thoreau
understands that the people will care for what he is doing, and want to help him.
However, once he buys the foundation, he tears it down and creates his own house.
Thoreau argues that people can help others, but they should only do so when asked.
Crane believes in a more golden rule type moral. He believes that all people should
help others in the way that they would want to be helped. Crane uses Pete as an
example of what happens to people who do not help others. He writes “Pete did not
consider that he ruined Maggie”(74). After Pete left Maggie, he is confronted by
Jimmie and is beat up in his bar. Crane believes in a moral that focuses on people
helping others in need. Thoreau, on the other hand, believes that one should only
help others when asked.

Thoreau writes a reflection on his life, in Walden, and Crane a story in Maggie: A Girl
Of The Streets. The two writers both have stories to tell but would disagree on the
ideas they present. Thoreau believes that people should not help others unless
asked, while Crane wants people to help others in need. Crane also believes that
self-reliance is not possible to live a successful life, while Thoreau believes it
necessary to live a good life. The two also clash on their opinions over how much
one can control their fate. Thoreau believes that people can choose how they want
to live their life, while Crane believes that it is all up to fate. Thoreau and Crane
disagree on several ideas, including morals, how much one can control their fate and
the importance of self-reliance.