Thoreau essentially felt that "our life is frittered away by detail". By this he merely meant that he found that the general public concentrated on each and every minuscule aspect of life down to a science until life became an overwhelming and worrisome rush. The main idea incorporated into the chapter, entitled "Where I Lived, and What I Lived For", of his renowned book, Walden, expressed his belief that a simple lifestyle produced the ideal life. With this in mind, his notion that details complicated life ties into the main idea, because it can be concluded that by disregarding life's vast particulars, in essence, life becomes simpler. Personally, I agree with Thoreau to a certain extent. I believe, when living by tons of specifics, a large portion of life's glory may pass by unseen. Likewise, I also feel that in today's society, one must deal with "details" as a necessary evil in order to be successful.
English: Henry David Thoreau, photograph taken in ...
English: Portrait by Benjamin D. Maxham (daguerreo...
English: Signature of author Henry David ThoreauIn my opinion, the model life demands a balance between the two extremes. It would involve concerning oneself with minimal details while taking time, now and then, to observe nature, perhaps, in order to appreciate simplicity.
Original title page of Walden featuring a picture ...
English: Replica of Thoreau's cabin near Walden Po...
Walden.