Read this sentence from paragraph 2.
[T]he people must have some complicated machinery or other, and hear its din, to satisfy that idea of government which they have.
How does this detail refine one of the text's main ideas?
While Thoreau defends the importance
• of government, this detail emphasizes that it often grows out of control.
By emphasizing the complicated nature of government, Thoreau demonstrates the pointlessness of trying to change what is already in place.
Although Thoreau is critical of government, this
• detail reveals his belief that it fills a human need for the illusion of structure.
The description of government as a
• machine reinforces Thoreau's theory that it can run as smoothly as the systems of trade and commerce.