I enjoyed a lot our class discussion on Tuesday.
First of all, I can say that I admire Thoreau and his thoughts. Not everyone will be able to go away from habitual life and become a farmer. I see this act as the statement of personal independence.
Thoreau also pointed out that he was very productive during his “exile”.I feel like the routine of everyday life lowers our productivity. My uncle went did something like Thoreau. Two years ago, he left the city and decided to live in the country area, almost like a village. He just took a time-out from his business. According to him, this experience gave him a chance to think about essential values in life. According to him, his productivity increased at that time; he had a time to think about his business and created a new strategy for his company.
May be sometimes, each of us needs this kind of experience – think about everything carefully and start fresh?
Second:
Thoreau’s idea of cost made me think about the film “In Time” with Justin Timberlake and Amanda Seyfried. According to Thoreau, cost is the amount of time it takes us to earn money. If you saw the film “In Time” you remember that people payed their lifetime in order to buy something. This “living time” basically replaced money; time became a currency.
So… do we have to see things we want to buy as the amount of time required to work in order to get it?
Oh, here is the trailer if you did not watch the movie:
I am glad you made the reference to the movie “In Time” since I thought of the same exact thing when I came across Throreau’s idea of cost. Although I’ve never seen the movie, I am aware of its premiss and find it to be fitting. Nice catch.
Interesting point. I hadn’t heard of the movie, but it made me think of a philosophical question posed in “The Wall” by Sartre. When he is given life again, time after facing death, it poses the question of ‘how would you spend it? or where would you find the highest good in life?’ Well, I think Sartre’s answer would differ from Thoreau’s, but I guess facing the woods and pond in Concord is different than facing death.