a simple and moderate way of life (materially), combined with great interest and activity in intellectual and spiritual matters
Benn is too much a product of his comfortable and intensely high-minded background to be able to understand why the common man (let alone the common politician) has more vulgar aspirations than plain living and high thinking. BNCI
The salons of those ladies who were devoted to republican ideals (and quite often, one could add, to the person of individual republicans) were careful to maintain a reputation for plain living and high thinking. BNCI
The chief error of these people is to be found in the very phrase to which they are most attached--"plainlivingandhighthinking. Gooogle