Thoreau and the tiny house movement...

I've been trying to make this point to my students for the past few years: that some of the tiny house movement's ideas can find their roots in Thoreau. But Rick Diguette, writing in the Washington Post, puts it more elegantly than I could:

"What Thoreau and the tiny-house movement can help us see is how we can simplify our needs and in the process reap benefits that enhance our quality of life. Reducing the size and number of monthly bills will obviously grow your bank account balance, but it can also help you recalibrate the way you perceive necessity. Thoreau didn’t argue that everyone should live in a small cabin, and (most) tiny housers aren’t guilty of that, either. The point is to use what you need rather than consume what you can afford. Scale down rather than add on. Simplify rather than complicate. The soul needs a resting place, but it should be a cozy nook, not a bigger house in a better Zip code."