Throughout chapter 15 the reader is presented with a melancholic mood that could be a result of Thoreau feeling isolated from society, or the winter season. As understood from the previous chapter, the cold winter is presenting Thoreau with many issues, and one of these said issues could be sadness. For example, the sounds Thoreau hears are not as pleasant or as lively as the sounds nature provided during the warmer weather. There are also not many individuals around to provide him with company. This can be seen in Thoreau imagination that the sounds the owl makes are, "how de do," while in reality the owl does not ask him anything. The next instance in which the reader understand where his melancholic mood stems from is when he no longer describes
