Ivan Gaskell is professor of cultural history and museum studies at Bard Graduate Center, New York City. He is the author or editor of several books, most recently Paintings and the Past: Philosophy, History, Art.

"A deeply researched and well-argued thesis showing how the experience of finding beauty and moral truth in ordinary things affected Thoreau’s ethics and philosophical thought."

• List of IllustrationsPrefaceChapter One: WorldsChapter Two: MigrantsChapter Three: BuildingsChapter Four: ShelterChapter Five: ArtistryChapter Six: CollectionsChapter Seven: SoundsChapter Eight: ConclusionAcknowledgmentsNotesIndex

Ivan Gaskell is professor of cultural history and museum studies at Bard Graduate Center, New York City. He is the author or editor of several books, most recently Paintings and the Past: Philosophy, History, Art.

"A deeply researched and well-argued thesis showing how the experience of finding beauty and moral truth in ordinary things affected Thoreau’s ethics and philosophical thought."

• List of IllustrationsPrefaceChapter One: WorldsChapter Two: MigrantsChapter Three: BuildingsChapter Four: ShelterChapter Five: ArtistryChapter Six: CollectionsChapter Seven: SoundsChapter Eight: ConclusionAcknowledgmentsNotesIndex