Question

though thoreau largely sticks to the conventions of standard english capitalization, he capitalizes nature and walking in the opening lines. later in the excerpt he writes, “the highest that we can attain to is not knowledge, but sympathy with intelligence.” how does thoreaus break with convention influence the meaning of the sentence? capitalizing a thing or idea personifies it, so here he wants us to think of getting to know knowledge, sympathy, and intelligence like friends. thoreau mentions later that “knowledge” and “sympathy with intelligence” are two ranks within hindu society, so they are actually proper nouns and should be capitalized.

Explanation:

Capitalizing words like "Knowledge", "Sympathy", and "Intelligence" personifies them, making the reader view these concepts as more than abstract ideas, but as entities one could relate to like friends. This breaks from standard - English capitalization and adds a deeper, more personal meaning to the sentence.

Answer:

Capitalizing these words personifies them and makes the reader relate to them as friends, adding a deeper meaning to the sentence.