solitudes
States of seclusion
Solitudes is the plural of solitude—states or periods of being alone.
Where solitude is usually uncountable (an abstract condition), solitudes emphasizes distinct instances or varieties: the solitudes of mountain peaks, the different solitudes of city and country life.
The word can also mean lonely or uninhabited places: the vast solitudes of the Arctic.
State of lacking companions
- alonenessState of being solitary
- seclusionVoluntary withdrawal from society
- withdrawalAct of taking away
- melancholySubdued, lasting sadness
introspection · quietude · emptiness · contemplation · alienation · detachment · hermitage · separateness
Focused attention practice
- retreatSanctuary or withdrawal
- contemplationSustained reflective attention
- monasticismCloistered religious living
- asceticismSevere self-denial practice
silence · inner peace · sanctuary · mindfulness · prayer · monastic cell · desert fathers · anchorite
Uncultivated, uninhabited natural region
- backcountrySparsely populated wilderness areas
- pristine natureUnspoiled wild environment
- virgin territoryPreviously unexplored area
- hinterlandsRemote inland areas
19th-century American naturalist-essayist
- WaldenMassachusetts pond and memoir
- romanticsIdealists about love
- transcendentalismIntuition-based idealist philosophy
- MertonLondon borough
Rilke · Wordsworth · sublime · pastoral · nature writing · autobiographical · philosophical musings · journal entries
loneliness
State of lacking companions
- alonenessState of being solitary
- seclusionVoluntary withdrawal from society
- withdrawalAct of taking away
melancholy · introspection · quietude · emptiness · contemplation · alienation · detachment · hermitage · separateness · introversion
meditation
Focused attention practice
- retreatSanctuary or withdrawal
- contemplationSustained reflective attention
- monasticismCloistered religious living
asceticism · silence · inner peace · sanctuary · mindfulness · prayer · monastic cell · desert fathers · anchorite · reclusion
wilderness
Uncultivated, uninhabited natural region
- backcountrySparsely populated wilderness areas
- pristine natureUnspoiled wild environment
- virgin territoryPreviously unexplored area
hinterlands · outback · tundra · mountain retreats · frontier
Thoreau
19th-century American naturalist-essayist
- WaldenMassachusetts pond and memoir
- romanticsIdealists about love
- transcendentalismIntuition-based idealist philosophy
Rilke · Wordsworth · Merton · sublime · pastoral · nature writing · autobiographical · philosophical musings · journal entries · epistolary
solitudescompanionships
Mutual bonds of friendship
companies · fellowships · togetherness · partnerships · associations
solitudescrowds
Assembled multitudes
gatherings · throngs · multitudes · mobs · assemblies
solitudesfriendships
Voluntary affectionate relationships
intimacies · connections · bonds · attachments · kinships
- calm solitudeRestful state alone
- silence and solitudeAbsence of sound, company
- peaceful solitudeCalm state of being alone
- fortress of solitudeSecluded personal sanctuary
- One Hundred Years of SolitudeMultigenerational Latin American epic