What is the main theme(s) of Walden?

I think the theme, or
main claim, of 's book can be best summed up by his sentence "Simplify,
simplify." If we live simply, then we will live truly, according to Thoreau. If our home is
simpleonly as big as we need and containing only the necessary furnishings (a bed, a desk, a
chair)then we will be happier for it. If I buy a huge house, then I will have to work
more to pay for it, to maintain it, to furnish it, to heat and cool it, and
so forth. So I will spend all my time working to maintain a home that I am rarely in! However,
if I buy a small home, and only the necessary things to fill it, I can work less
and spend more of my time doing the things that make me truly
happy: reading, hiking, swimming, sleeping, and so on.

Further, one does
not need a ton of clothes. One suit, for Thoreau, was enough. He could patch it and fix it, and
if people judged him for it, who cares? Clothes are there to serve a purpose: to protect our
skin and keep us warm. Again, if I...