5.24.2014

imagine myself somebody else
...Thoreau's Journal: 24-May-1853

Talked, or tried to talk, with R.W.E. Lost my time—nay, almost my identity. He, assuming a false opposition where there was no difference of opinion, talked to the wind—told me what I knew—and I lost my time trying to imagine myself somebody else to oppose him.

3 comments:

michael jameson said...

when someone else has an opinion and it is false but they will not except any logical reasoning and you continue to argue who is the fool!. michael jameson oldantiqueguy@hotmail.com

AuthorMegNorth said...

What an interesting thing to say about Emerson! We don't know him like Henry did ... we only have his essays and poems and funny quips that end up on home decor items. Sometimes I lose my time and my identity talking to people, too. They're just so ... contrary, I guess. Some folks love to play devil's advocate just to stir things up. I'm a quieter sort, and a chat being me and Henry being himself sounds lovely.

vanjulio said...

I've been wondering if your mind does this more as you get older or less. Does it become more incoherent? Are there more voices? Do you slip into other personalities and arguments just to fit the script because you have seen this same movie before, and you know how it ends? Or do you hit a point where you just act naturally? It seems natural to be speaking in the first person in a conversation. A lot of creatures on the earth get by without ever speaking really. And their sounds are all very similar. Without meaning I really do lose my voice.