

Life Without Principle (1854) - begriffs
http://thoreau.eserver.org/life1.html

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Jun8
Excellent essay, thanks for posting. It parallels the following important idea
from pg's essay on losing time and money
([http://paulgraham.com/selfindulgence.html](http://paulgraham.com/selfindulgence.html)):

 __The most dangerous way to lose time is not to spend it having fun, but to
spend it doing fake work. __

As a person who has suffered for the latter all my life, I cannot emphasize
this more. Even now, when I have a few precious hours to myself on a Sunday
afternoon (this happens _very_ rarely), I have no immediate plans, so I surf
this or that website, taking notes about ideas, etc., which to someone
watching me would seem like I was engaged in valuable activity.

~~~
herokusaki
>this happens very rarely

Why?

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antispin
Awesome to see my favourite author here on Hacker News.

May I also humbly recommend:

* Civil Disobedience (1849) - the classic referred to by Gandhi and MLK [http://thoreau.eserver.org/civil.html](http://thoreau.eserver.org/civil.html)

* A Plea for Captain John Brown (1859) - Thoreau was one of the very, very few to defend Brown attempt to launch a slave rebellion [http://thoreau.eserver.org/plea.html](http://thoreau.eserver.org/plea.html)

* Walden (1854) - of course - read the first chapter at least ("Economy") for a timeless analysis of what is _necessary_ in life [http://thoreau.eserver.org/walden00.html](http://thoreau.eserver.org/walden00.html)

~~~
bcl
I would also include Walking in that list. But I may as well expand that and
recommend all of his essays.

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quantumpotato_
Relevant?

"When our life ceases to be inward and private, conversation degenerates into
mere gossip. We rarely meet a man who can tell us any news which he has not
read in a newspaper, or been told by his neighbor; and, for the most part, the
only difference between us and our fellow is that he has seen the newspaper,
or been out to tea, and we have not."

------
MachineElf
Even though the language is a bit dated ( also, English is not my native
language) this essay is well worth reading and insightful. Didn't know about
this Thoreau fellow before reading this though so really thank you for
posting.

One thing i keep thinking about is the stark contradiction between the high
standard of living of western society and ever increasing depression rates ( I
don't have a list of sources at hand, but I believe this to be somewhat common
knowledge ), so I think that this essay strikes right at the heart of the
problem, in the sense that we are almost living for making a living( Or some
such phrasing ), or at least hints at a deeper, more underlying and worrying
phenomenon .

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benched
_" If I should sell both my forenoons and afternoons to society, as most
appear to do, I am sure that for me there would be nothing left worth living
for."_

If I say things like this, people are quick to suggest medication.

~~~
AlexeyBrin
They suggest that you have a problem because this way of thinking questions
their way of life. You can always keep your controversial opinions to your
self or share them with a group of close friends. No need to make other people
feel uncomfortable.

BTW, I agree with the author's assertion, you should try as much as possible
to be your own master and not be the slave of other people opinion.

~~~
randallsquared
"They suggest that you have a problem because this way of thinking questions
their way of life."

Well, perhaps. Or perhaps they have noticed that, or have accepted the
conventional wisdom that, people who say things like this are more often
depressed than both not depressed and thoughtful.

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andyl
We have principles! Marriage is bad and drugs are good. Read it right here on
Hacker News.

~~~
chuckledog
Thoreau is clearly comparing the Massachusetts startup scene to the one in
California.

~~~
mattschmulen
there is a Massachusetts startup scene ?

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Stal3r
This is a long, dense essay with dated language posted with no context. It is
cumbersome to read. Does anyone have a more accessible article which parallels
the ideas here?

~~~
antispin
"Men sometimes speak as if the study of the classics would at length make way
for more modern and practical studies; but the adventurous student will always
study classics, in whatever language they may be written and however ancient
they may be. For what are the classics but the noblest recorded thoughts of
man?" \-- Thoreau

Sorry, couldn't resist.

