Nature
by
Ralph Waldo Emerson
by
Ralph Waldo Emerson
While visiting Concord Massachusetts on vacation this fall I made myself a promise that I would alternate the more popular fiction I listen to on audio with works by some of the people whose homes I have visited. One of these people was Ralph Waldo Emerson. I finished listening to his essay "Nature" while walking on the treadmill after work tonight. While I enjoyed the book it seemed that I would hear a line that would make me want to digest it and off my mind would go and when I returned to listening I had missed too much. So I think this is the type of work a person would want to read a few lines and think about and then read a few more lines. I do not think it lends itself to audio. I tried starting to listen to the beginning again, thinking the second time through I would do better, and again there is so much that is thought provoking my mind would not stay with the reader. As always click on the author's name and title to learn more. Also, I think I have figured out how to embed the player of the actual audio book I listened to. Since it is over 75 years old the book is in the public domain and there is no copyright issue.
I think the problem with this audio version has to do with the lack of acting experience of the part of the man who's doing the reading. I can't follow him either, and I think it has something to do with his choppy phrasing.
ReplyDeleteI like Emerson, however, so I may have to pick up a copy of this book sometime.
Thanks for the post.
Each chapter has a different person reading it. I agree that the person reading the intro does not read the sentences in the flowing way that they should be read. But Librivox is all volunteers and free so that is what we get for free I guess. I think I would like a copy of the actual book too though so a few lines could be read a day to digest it slowly and then think about what he says. As a deist, nature is an important part of my belief system. Actually in this recording Chapter Four was read by a woman with an accent and it was my favorite chapter. If you pull the little button to the end of the box it will go onto the next chp and if you do that enough times it will be at chp four. It is on language and how nature has influenced our language with our use of symbols. If I could have figured out how to I would have just posted Chp four. Her accent does make you have to listen hard but her voice flows better than the intro person and the content of that chp is good.
ReplyDeletethnx!
ReplyDelete