Writing over one hundred years ago, Henry David Thoreau revealed the economic and political structure of the nineteenth century in his stylized analysis of the "Economy", the longest portion of his famous book, Walden. His analysis far surpassed the vision of classical economics as he attempted and succeeded, at least in many people's views, of separating the way the world is and the way it should be. His writing escaped the conventions of "pure economics" but his philosophies were nevertheless expressed in quite economic terms. The language used is more elegant and graceful than what would be found in an economics textbook, however Thoreau does manage to describe many of the technical foundations of an economic society. These include how demand and supply are generated, various factors of production, employment, and even poverty and inequality. "Economy" on the surface is more of a philosophy than a theory however it has within its bounds a number of interesting thoughts and a very consistent reasoning that make one question society's acceptance of Classical Economics.
             "Economy" exposed a significant part of Thoreau's philosophy on life including his first proposition that man's economic life should be reduced to its bare essentials. He believed that "Most of the luxuries, and many of the so-called comforts of life, are not only indispensable but positive hindrances to the elevation of mankind." (Thoreau, 10) Following this idea, Thoreau searched for what he might call the necessities of human life and held that they had not changed for centuries of human existence. What was, and is "necessary for life" (Thoreau, 8) or, in other words "all that man obtains by his own exertions" (Thoreau, 8) along with the methods to obtain them were restricted to those of a "primitive and frontier life." (Thoreau, 8) From there, Thoreau...