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Due:
‘Simplify, Simplify...’
A Project in Doing Without
Thoreau was an eloquent advocate of the simple life. Turning a common belief
on its head, Thoreau claimed a man was rich in proportion to the number of things
he could without. He himself went to live by Walden Pond in search of the simple
life.
Does simplicity enrich, as Thoreau contended? Does it help clear away the trivia that distracts us from deeper insights into nature and into ourselves --“the essential facts of life” (Walden)? Or does “living simply” just cause us inconvenience and a sense of deprivation? This is your opportunity to find out. For the next week, choose something that you value owning or doing, and do without it. Then discuss in your journal how the experience affected you.