Dr. Marc Jolley, a senior lecturer of philosophy and director of Mercer University Press, has been appointed to the board of The Thoreau Society. The organization is recognized as the largest and oldest group dedicated to an American author.
Dr. Jolley has been involved with The Thoreau Society since 2006 and has studied Henry David Thoreau for many years. He first encountered Thoreau’s work while in seminary and began teaching about him in 1993 during a church course on the environment.
Thoreau, who lived from 1817 to 1862, was known as a naturalist, transcendentalist, and philosopher. Dr. Jolley described Thoreau’s approach: “Thoreau was a deep spiritual thinker, but he was not a church person,” Dr. Jolley said. “He had a real sense of the divine, and it was found in nature. It was found in each of us.”
At Mercer University since 1995, Dr. Jolley includes Thoreau’s writings in his ethics and philosophy of religion classes. He uses Walden to discuss topics such as personal growth and the belief that God exists within every individual.
The board of directors at The Thoreau Society oversees its property, operations, and finances. Dr. Jolley serves on both the publications and finance committees.
“It’s a humbling experience, and there’s a sense of real responsibility for making sure that this continues going as well as it has been going,” he said.
His three-year term began after his election at the society’s annual gathering in July in Concord, Massachusetts—Thoreau’s birthplace and longtime home. At this event, which focused on the 250th anniversary of the Revolutionary War, Dr. Jolley presented his paper titled “Walden as a Declaration of Independence.” In his presentation, he explored how Thoreau’s move to Walden Pond represented independence from societal expectations.
“This was a real act of independence from society to live a better life rather than one that’s just a pure conformist,” he said.
Reflecting on his involvement with The Thoreau Society, Dr. Jolley noted what he has learned through participation: “The things he wrote, the places he went and the time he spent in nature were an extraordinary amount for someone who lived that briefly,” he said.
