The Passé simple expresses an action that happened and ended in the past. This action has not impact on the present. It is mainly used to state a succession of actions that happened in the past : "il marcha, il mangea, puis il se reposa". The Passé simple is not usually used when speaking. Still, texts are often written using passé simple. On the other hand, the Passé composé is widely used when speaking French. It is about stating that an action that happened in the past still has consequences on the present : "il A MANGE des fraises, ces fraises sont bonnes."