In this passage,<em><u> Thoreau uses furniture as a specific example of a philosophical tendency toward "simplicity in all things</u></em>." Thoreau believes, quite simply, that the less furniture and "stuff" you have, the more free you are. <em><u>He is not opposed to all possessions, merely to having too many of them (or being too attached to them) and having them keep you imprisoned or set in one place for your entire life.</u></em>
