# Walden — Character guide

> Key figures in Walden by Henry David Thoreau.

- [Henry David Thoreau](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/walden_se/characters/narrator.md): Thoreau withdraws to the woods not to escape people but to winnow them, and the visitors who reach his lodge—like the Canadian woodchopper who carries cold woodchuck and a reverence for Homer he cannot read—arrive under 
- [John Field](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/walden_se/characters/john_field.md): Field lives with his wife and children in a leaky house on poor land, rising early to work another man's fields while his own go untended, and Thoreau finds in him a cautionary mirror rather than a villain. The tension i
- [John Farmer](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/walden_se/characters/john_farmer.md): A farmer who sits at his door and hears a flute, symbolizing a contemplative life.
- [Flint](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/walden_se/characters/flint.md): A former owner of the pond's shore, criticized for his materialistic land management.
- [Col. Quoil](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/walden_se/characters/col_quoil.md): A former soldier and drunkard who lived in a shanty near the pond.
- [Brister Freeman](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/walden_se/characters/brister_freeman.md): A former slave who lived near Walden Pond and had a small farm.
- [Zilpha](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/walden_se/characters/zilpha.md): A former slave woman who lived in a hut near the pond and spun linen.
- [Wyman](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/walden_se/characters/wyman.md): A potter who lived in a shanty near the pond and sold pottery.
- [Cato Ingraham](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/walden_se/characters/cato_ingraham.md): A former slave who lived in a hut near Walden Pond and farmed.
- [Hermit](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/walden_se/characters/hermit.md): A character in a dialogue with the Poet, representing solitude and contemplation.
- [Mr. Poet](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/walden_se/characters/mr_poet.md): A character in a dialogue with the Hermit, representing artistic inspiration.
- [Old Johnson](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/walden_se/characters/old_johnson.md): An elderly neighbor who visited Thoreau and told stories of the past.
- [Tom Hyde](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/walden_se/characters/tom_hyde.md): A former resident of the woods known for his independence and poverty.

HTML index: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/walden_se/characters