--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When [Ralph Waldo] Emerson visited…" description: "\"When [Ralph Waldo] Emerson visited Thoreau in jail and asked, 'What are you doing in there?' it was reported that Thoreau replied, 'What are you doing ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cb4/howard-zinn-576_jail_when-ralph-waldo-emerson-visited-thoreau_2416673.jpg" --- # When \[Ralph Waldo\] Emerson visited Thoreau in jail and… ![“When [Ralph Waldo] Emerson visited Thoreau in jail and asked, 'What are you doing in there?' it was reported that Thoreau replied, 'What are you doing out there?'” quote by Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cb4/howard-zinn-576_jail_when-ralph-waldo-emerson-visited-thoreau_2416673.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cb4/howard-zinn-576_jail_when-ralph-waldo-emerson-visited-thoreau_2416673.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cb4/howard-zinn-576_jail_when-ralph-waldo-emerson-visited-thoreau_2416673.jpg) > “When \[Ralph Waldo\] Emerson visited Thoreau in jail and asked, 'What are you doing in there?' it was reported that Thoreau replied, 'What are you doing out there?'” [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. True freedom is found in aligning one’s actions with one’s principles, questioning authority rather than merely complying. **In simple terms:** Freedom means acting on your convictions, not just obeying. Key Takeaway Act according to your values, not just external expectations. Themes freedom individualism principles civil disobedience Mood determined inspirational Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - prison protest - civil rights activism - personal moral dilemmas - social reform Key Concepts philosophy ethical integrity personal autonomy Questions to Reflect On - What values guide your daily choices? - When is it justified to break the law for conscience? A Different Perspective Critics may view such defiance as impractical or selfish. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Jail](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jail/) ## Related quotes > [“There is then creative reading as well as creative writing. 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Ralph Waldo Emerson.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorenz-font/he-who-is-not-everyday-conquering-some-fear-has-not-learned-the/) Lorenz Font > [Ralph Waldo Emerson would definitely be my homeboy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainn-wilson/ralph-waldo-emerson-would-definitely-be-my-homeboy/) [Rainn Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainn-wilson/) > [I pretend no originality in observing that mass education was motivated in part by the perceived need to "educate them to keep them from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/i-pretend-no-originality-in-observing-that-mass-education-was/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [“(On Ralph Waldo Emerson)I love all men who dive. 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So when the British military commander in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/george-washington-had-turned-down-the-requests-of-blacks-seeking/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) [Explore all 461 Howard Zinn quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) ## More Jail quotes > [I don't want this to be a distraction. This has been distracting enough. I'm not going to rehash this going forward. I'm sure other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jayson-werth/i-don-t-want-this-to-be-a-distraction-this-has-been-distracting/) [Jayson Werth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jayson-werth/) > [Jail is definitely not cool. Education is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ja-rule/jail-is-definitely-not-cool-education-is/) [Ja Rule](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ja-rule/) > [Yesterday's truth is today's bullshit. 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Because, there is REST at the end of each AR"REST"; either in jail or in the grave. The wisest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/opoong-amankwaa/do-not-fear-arrest-why-because-there-is-rest-at-the-end-of-each-ar/) Opoong Amankwaa > [Almost makes you want to go to jail out here, doesn't it?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/almost-makes-you-want-to-go-to-jail-out-here-doesn-t-it/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [They would almost throw the cops in jail when they tried to arrest me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-taylor/they-would-almost-throw-the-cops-in-jail-when-they-tried-to-arrest-me/) [Lawrence Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-taylor/) > [a TEN-YEAR-OLD lad in Indianapolis who was arrested for picking up coal along the side of railroad tracks is now in jail. 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But the thing I believe in the most is ethics. If someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-delay/i-take-no-pleasure-in-seeing-delay-swing-gently-in-the-wind-but-the/) [Tom DeLay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-delay/) [Browse all 1,294 Jail quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jail/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "When [Ralph Waldo] Emerson visited Thoreau in jail and asked, 'What are you doing in there?' it was reported that Thoreau replied, 'What are you doing out there?'", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Howard Zinn" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/when-ralph-waldo-emerson-visited-thoreau-in-jail-and-asked-what-are/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Jail" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/when-ralph-waldo-emerson-visited-thoreau-in-jail-and-asked-what-are/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cb4/howard-zinn-576_jail_when-ralph-waldo-emerson-visited-thoreau_2416673.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cb4/howard-zinn-576_jail_when-ralph-waldo-emerson-visited-thoreau_2416673.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cb4/howard-zinn-576_jail_when-ralph-waldo-emerson-visited-thoreau_2416673.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“When [Ralph Waldo] Emerson visited Thoreau in jail and asked, 'What are you doing in there?' it was reported…” — Howard Zinn", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Howard Zinn", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "When [Ralph Waldo] Emerson visited Thoreau...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/when-ralph-waldo-emerson-visited-thoreau-in-jail-and-asked-what-are/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/when-ralph-waldo-emerson-visited-thoreau-in-jail-and-asked-what-are/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```