Nowadays, smartphones fill us with text messages. Social media attack us with endless notices. Many consumers are buying the latest digital devices, from tablets and fitness trackers to commercial drones. Simple living seems to be a thing of the past.
Thoreau would beg to differ. As a writer who claimed the value of simplicity almost two centuries ago, he went against his time. He lived during the height of the Industrial Age, distinguished by the rise of huge factories and powerful machines such as steam engines. Thoreau withdrew from city life to live alone in the woods. He brought with him only the necessities of life and wrote about this adventure in his book Walden.
In Walden, Thoreau is basically making a philosophical statement：We are not living deliberate or meaningful lives, thanks to modern technology. We created powerful machines to make life more convenient. Unfortunately, these machines have done the opposite. In his words, "Men have become the tools of their tools".
When technology causes that much distraction and confusion, it may be healthy to simplify life by shortening these technological use. Personally, I've done so in two ways. First, I don't use data on my cellphone. I only use it to call or text. Second, I quit most social media. As a result, my technology distracts me very little, which allows me to live in. less confusion and, therefore, more deliberation. Sure, that's not as extreme as Thoreau-moving to the woods, but it's a realistic move I can make toward a more meaningful life.
One final clarification：Thoreau's message of simplicity isn't about rejecting all technology. It is, however, rejecting technological consumerism, or compulsively buying more technology for the sake of having more technology. This is why Walden is such an important book for technology education. Simplicity means minimizing material distractions so as to maximize life's meaning.
