Conscience

             Conscience

                          Henry David Thoreau.

      

              

                   

                        

     

                             

                         In this poem conscience stands for inner sense and indirectly also asks the question

                      Do I have my own conscience?

                                              The very first problem is society itself because there are innumerable taboos in society and also confusion which suggests that life is not rhythmic .It is also said that the conscience is based on fear not love. This poem talks about individuality because in society what happens with every individual is that he or she does not sustain any individuality .There is no uniqueness among people .he directly asks the question like

                    “Where is your individuality?”

               The poem is actually in the form of debate where the speaker speaks to himself .The meaningful lines he  share are

               “I love like whose plot is simple

                And does not thicken with every”.

                   Here plot means the life itself which is not at all straight and simple rather smoother and with this , he has interwoven other stories as well he also challenges “ The Bible” according to which life has forms and speaker clarify that life is harder than math’s because there is no specific formula in life itself.

                              What he meant here by pimple is problems which occur in life.it also means something unpleasant and unwanted .You like clear roads where you dislike speed breakers, pits etc. Similarity pimples are also like speed breakers which do not let the life be simple and clear .The problems as pimples crop up in one’s life.

                 The question he asks earlier is very rhetorical are which is highly or rather thoroughly philosophical .in this poem he makes demands.

                      More ever, he writes;-

                   “I love an earnest soul,

                    Who’s mightily joys and sorrow?

                    Are not drowned in a how!”

               And clarifies the hidden meaning that is about honesty which is very difficult to define .Indirectly it is symbolize the fact that conscience, similarity cannot be defined .It also presents the ideas that honesty and conscience are very wide forms which cannot be defined in a shorter span like a bowl which is very narrow and also says that man should not be narrow minded we are happy because society is happy and we are unhappy because it’s unhappy.

                      Thoreau likes the concept that Adam was faithful to Eve because he’s going to live with wife not God. He is talking about hypocrisy and says that we all pretend to be good but obviously we are not good in the underneath lines.

               “I love a soul not all of wood

                Predestined to be good,

                But true the backbone”.

               Our life is full of Dos and Don’ts right and wrong but what about the third form named “Right Wrong”.

   Similarly these are one another example of Black and White – Grey but what about this third form. So he present his dilemma here ad says that it impossible Thoreau also shares his ideas by saying that  we all are human because we all have the same problem of inner sense of conscience and of 

                  “Where to go?”

                   “What to choose?”

                                                          Thoreau believes that life is beyond logic .Life is like a poem which can have multiple interpretation .First he capitalizes God in the line,

           “By whom the works which God begun”.

   Then he does not capitalize it in the line

         “If not good God, Good Devil”

 And Then again he capitalizes him in the line

              “To cheer God along”

                    It clearly shows that he does not favor to God but rather satirizes him and he satirizes him and he blames god who made the author.

               The main theme of this poem is

                    “I want to be what I am”.

             I do not want to be what I should be.

                                          Further more he presents his hidden and meaningful ideas that piece of wood can be crafted as it is solid but conscience is not solid and then says that if we are pieces of woods then God is craftsman’s, we are merely wooden soul who is predesignate to be good .So human beings are mere toys or actors.

                               Thoreau comes to the conclusion that one’s soul must be true to one .I must be true to one. I must be mere nothing else. This poem also reminds of Jayanat Mahapatra “Missing” in which he question himself by saying

                          “What I am?”

                   And loneliness is important to know who you are similarly in this poem, the question is asked not to be answered .We are helpless creatures we are living like corpses. The speaker says that he wants solitude so that he can know himself .He wants   time to talk to himself and put a very wonderful question

              “Do you talk to yourself everyday”?

                   It is all about placing ourselves in disguise in day to day life. We never take a time to think to talk to us. If is good to be alone sometimes and finally he says that when you are free you can say that it’s your conscience.

    Conclusion:-

                  “What is this life?

                     If full of care

                    We have no time to stand and stare”

            Thus, Thoreau, here talks about the freedom in which one can contemplate about or over his conscience in which one can think about the answer of “What am I”?