Like in Walden, Proenneke describes many of the reasons for his isolation as the desire to simply work hard and get away from common things, stating, "Needs? I guess that is what bothers so many folks. They keep expanding their needs until they are dependent on too many things and too many other people... I wonder how many things in the average American home could be eliminated if the question were asked, 'Must I really have this?'"

As Thoreau said in Walden, "I went into the woods to live deliberately." While these differ slightly, they are very close to the same reason.