I share a lot of luckyguess' thoughts, but I have a bit of a looser interpretation.
In my view, the narrator is speaking rhetorically to someone he cares about, passing along advice that he has learned the hard way from life experience. Perhaps she is a bit younger, 25 while he is approaching his 30's and she is still a bit naive about "the real world". However, he relents that despite his experiences he still doesnt have it figured out. "I know what I know would not fill a thimble".
He sees the flaws with the way things are, and worries that like all the others he will become accustomed to western civilization and therefore less apt to want to do something to change the system. By participating in conspicuous consumption, you are sacrificing morality for comfort. This is a trade-off he is reluctant to make but at the same time does not see any alternatives because the game is already so established. "they don't let go, so keep them away". His only advice is to ignore the outside world and focus instead on the things that personally provide you real spiritual fufillment vs. the things ads tell you on tv and inside the mall will make you feel satisfied. By taking the easy way out, you miss out on the greatest aspect of life, growing into something great.
I share a lot of luckyguess' thoughts, but I have a bit of a looser interpretation. In my view, the narrator is speaking rhetorically to someone he cares about, passing along advice that he has learned the hard way from life experience. Perhaps she is a bit younger, 25 while he is approaching his 30's and she is still a bit naive about "the real world". However, he relents that despite his experiences he still doesnt have it figured out. "I know what I know would not fill a thimble".
He sees the flaws with the way things are, and worries that like all the others he will become accustomed to western civilization and therefore less apt to want to do something to change the system. By participating in conspicuous consumption, you are sacrificing morality for comfort. This is a trade-off he is reluctant to make but at the same time does not see any alternatives because the game is already so established. "they don't let go, so keep them away". His only advice is to ignore the outside world and focus instead on the things that personally provide you real spiritual fufillment vs. the things ads tell you on tv and inside the mall will make you feel satisfied. By taking the easy way out, you miss out on the greatest aspect of life, growing into something great.