A Study of Thoreau through the Lens of Palahniuk
“I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived.”
-- Henry David Thoreau, Walden (78)
What is it to truly live? This fundamental question has been raised countless times through the generations, and never more poignantly and influentially so as in this Thoreau quote concerning his famous exodus to Walden pond. His influence is felt throughout even modern literature and the arts, in such unlikely of places as contemporary author Chuck Palahniuk’s 1999 masterpiece and bestseller Fight Club. Its message, inherited from Thoreau and others, is applicable to the numberless multitudes who seem to pass through life, caring only for that which might advance them to the next stage of cultural development, engaging themselves fully only in acquiring those countless ephemeral pleasures readily available in our world capitalism. Can this even be called living, both Thoreau and Palahniuk ask, the mundanities of everyday existence punctuated by hedonistic blowouts come weekend nights? The message both authors impart is that there is so much more to life than culture would lead us to believe. The human spirit is not confined by societal constructions like careers and educations, not limited by the imaginations of the old and unadventurous men in control. As Palahniuk so bluntly yet eloquently puts it in Fight Club, “You're not your job. You're not how much money you have in the bank. You're not the car you drive. You're not the contents of your wallet. You're not your fucking khakis.” The fact that millions, rather, billions of talented, unique, and interesting human beings choose to live their lives confined by these invisible cultural barriers is a tragic prospect, and that’s exactly the lifestyle Thoreau was railing against with this quote. In order to truly live, he would argue, it must be on your own terms - and ideally separate from external influence. The crux of Henry David’s entire worldview is epitomized in this particularly quote - wholly compatible with and perhaps easier understood through the lens of modern the equivalent Fight Club - is that people should “live deliberately,” carving their own paths separate from societal influence and take note of what they truly value in life.
From this summation, Thoreau would seem the type to offer an elaborate essay when presented with a straightforward true-or-false question. This [admittedly] childlike dichotomy misrepresents the sort of nonconformity Thoreau here espouses, which determines the course of one’s entire life, alters the very lifestyle within which one chooses to spend his meager century on Earth. The urgency of Thoreau’s implicit call to action is universally and timelessly understood: none of us, without exception, will be here forever. “On a long enough timeline,” explains Palahniuk, “the survival rate for everyone drops to zero.” With such limited time and so much yet to accomplish, we humans must not fall into a routine of mediocrity and living by another’s standards. According to this worldview, the act of falling into a predestined and assigned societal role is among the greatest disservices of man to himself. “This is your life, and it’s ending one minute at a time,” offers Palahniuk in one of his most famous and memorable lines, urging the reader to take charge of his existence while there’s still time.
Fundamentally, “living deliberately” entails deriving meaning from everyday life. To truly appreciate and take stock of what we consider valuable, regardless of whatever social stigmas are attached - watching a sunset, stargazing, or observing an ant colony at work. Noticing these “insignificancies” and considering them worth a mention, while the rest of humankind obsesses needlessly over class and gender and sport, is an important part of reevaluating - quite literally - your lifestyle and priorities. Finding meaning in a seemingly absurd universe is seldom easy, however, as evidenced by a key turning point in the plot of Fight Club. Anti-hero and eventual antagonist Tyler Durden intentionally totals a car with several passengers riding along, and upon emerging from the wreckage exclaims, “God damn! We just had a near-life experience, fellas.”
In the world of personal computers, those who strain every ounce of capability and productivity from their machines are called “power users,” focused on getting the most from their computing experiences. These end users boast more effective and fruitful encounters with technology, and tend to enjoy increased longevity in the machines they care for so dearly. In very much the same way, I interpret Thoreau’s quote as encouraging the audience to wring out every ounce of beauty, originality, creativity and interest out of everyday life, resulting in a happier, more eventful, and altogether more satisfying experience in their lives. For me, this is exactly the point that both Thoreau and Palahniuk alike are trying to get across: just as there is so much more to each computer than simple commonplace applications, life is infinitely more interesting and expansive than the simple, day-to-day experiences that most people settle for at the bequest of societal pressures.
Those who appreciate and relate to Thoreau’s message, history’s so-called “power users” of life, have preserved his idealogical call to arms over the generations so that we modern readers, and eventually we moviegoers, could grasp Chuck Palahniuk’s interpretation of similar ideals in a contemporary context. For many, both the various works of Henry David Thoreau and Palahniuk’s Fight Club have proven influential, thought-provoking, and - in many cases - life-changing literary experiences, leading to readers breaking new metaphysical ground in their own lives. While conformity plagued the world as Thoreau in his time perceived it, it would appear that his suggestion to “live deliberately” has provided the antidote, encouraging those listening to squeeze every last drop of experience out of every moment of their lives.
