Who said “Our inventions are wont to be pretty toys, which distract our attention from serious…”?

Verified

Henry David Thoreau. A published source records them saying or writing it.

SourceWalden (1854)

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Cite this quote

For academic work, cite the original where you can: Walden (1854).

APA

Thoreau, H. D. (n.d.). Our inventions are wont to be pretty toys, which distract our attention from serious things. They are but improved means to an unimproved end. [Quotation]. Famous Quotations Network. Retrieved October 24, 2026, from https://www.famous-quotations.com/quotes/39195-our-inventions-are-wont-to-be-pretty-toys/

MLA

Thoreau, Henry David. “Our inventions are wont to be pretty toys, which distract our attention from serious things. They are but improved means to an unimproved end.” Famous Quotations Network, https://www.famous-quotations.com/quotes/39195-our-inventions-are-wont-to-be-pretty-toys/. Accessed 24 Oct. 2026.

Chicago

Thoreau, Henry David. “Our inventions are wont to be pretty toys, which distract our attention from serious things. They are but improved means to an unimproved end.” Famous Quotations Network. Accessed October 24, 2026. https://www.famous-quotations.com/quotes/39195-our-inventions-are-wont-to-be-pretty-toys/.

Related quotes

“Science and technology multiply around us. To an increasing extent they dictate the languages in which we speak and think. Either we use those languages, or we remain mute.”
— J. G. Ballard
Verified"Introduction" to the French edition (1974) of Crash (1973); reprinted in Re/Search no. 8/9 (1984) · evidenceDetails & citeTechnology

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