The Simple Life: Plain Living and High Thinking in American Culture
Editorial Reviews
Book Description
From Thomas Jefferson to Lewis Mumford, from Henry David Thoreau to the hippies of the 1960s, advocates of the simple life have formed a diverse tradition in America's cultural history. Here, for the first time, David Shi presents an intriguing and comprehensive study of the many different
ways in which Americans have pursued the elusive ideal of plain living and high thinking.
Beginning with the colonial period and the Puritan and Quaker ethic of hard work, temperate living and spiritual devotion, Shi ends with a discussion of Jimmy Carter's and Ronald Reagan's contrasting views of what constitutes the good life. In between we encounter a compelling cast of
characters, including Jonathan Edwards, Ralph Waldo Emerson, and Scott and Helen Nearing.
In treating the simple life both as a sentimental ideal and as a guide for individual conduct, Shi reveals the intellectual and cultural life of this country and illuminates the persistent desire of select individuals and groups to elevate American life above the material and the mundane.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
The Simple Life: Plain Living and High Thinking in American Culture,David E. Shi,University of Georgia Press,0820323403,Civilization,History,History - General History,History: American,Latin America - Mexico,National characteristics, Amer,National characteristics, American,Popular Culture - General,Simplicity,Social History,Social life and customs,United States,United States - General
The Simple Life: Plain Living and High Thinking in American Culture
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