Thoreau starts his essay by supporting the motto- “that government is best which governs least” (177), which implies the reduction of governmental interference in everyday affairs by reducing the government’s capacity to tax for unpopular causes. A case in point is a poll tax – a “per head” tax imposed on all citizens to help support, what Thoreau considered an unjust war against Mexico, which would extend slavery into new US territories, organized by a small elite of persons who have manipulated government to their benefit against popular will (177). Furthermore, Thoreau maintains that government rarely proves itself useful and that it derives its authority from the majority since they are physically the strongest group, not because they hold the most legitimate viewpoint. He continues that individual’s prior obligation is to do what they believe is right and not to obey the law dictated by the majority. It can be suggested that when a government is unjust, people should refuse to obey the law and dissociate themselves from the government in general. This implies that a person is not obligated to devote his life to eradicating evils from the world, but he is ought not to participate in such evils, which could mean not being a member of an unjust institution such as the government. However, at the same time, it could not be the most appropriate approach for one to dissociate from the society and be ultimately responsible to herself alone, especially in current interconnected world. Moreover, it is worth noting, that there is a strong sense of individualism and skepticism toward the government throughout Thoreau's work. It can be argued that Thoreau is deeply skeptical of the government because he despises the view that an individu...
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...mply not make the world any worse.
To return to the original question, it would appear that a man has a duty to act according to the dictates of his conscience, despite the latter goes against majority opinion, or the laws of society. In cases when the state supports unjust or immoral laws, Thoreau's notion of service to one's country paradoxically shifts to the form of resistance against it. Resistance is the highest form of patriotism because it illustrates a desire not to demolish government but to build a better one in the long term. Thus, Thoreau does not advocate a complete rejection of the administration, but resistance to those specific features considered to be unjust or immoral. Even though Thoreau’s ideas were not much influential in nineteenth century, it helped to inspire Mohandas Gandhi’s and Martin Luthor King’s theories of nonviolent resistance.
“All machines have their friction―and possibly this does enough good to counterbalance the evil… But when the friction comes to have its machine… I say, let us not have such a machine any longer” (Thoreau 8). In Henry David Thoreau’s essay “On the Duty of Civil Disobedience,” the author compares government to a machine, and its friction to inequity. He believes that when injustice overcomes a nation, it is time for that nation’s government to end. Thoreau is ashamed of his government, and says that civil disobedience can fight the system that is bringing his country down. Alas, his philosophy is defective: he does not identify the benefits of organized government, and fails to recognize the danger of a country without it. When looked into, Thoreau’s contempt for the government does not justify his argument against organized democracy.
injustice to another, then I say, break the law." This shows Thoreau’s policy of civil
He met the government “once a year--no more--in the person of its tax-gatherer; this is the only mode in which a man situated as I am necessarily meets it. ”iii In the case of Thoreau and King, their struggle could not be resolved by simple negotiation. The third step, as King calls it, is self-purification.
In my first analysis of Thoreau's essay, one of my strengths was being able to identify Thoreau's use of logos, or reasoning. In this instance, Thoreau draws from an example of a popular scholar, Paley, who argues: "'So long as the established government cannot be resisted or changed without public inconveniency, it is the will of God'" (Thoreau). In my analysis, I acknowledged Thoreau's citing of this quote and then demonstrated how he flipped Paley's argument. He reasons with the audience that doing the right thing, though sometimes unpleasant, will yield greater rewards in the long run.
In Thoreau’s view, he felt that the government was insufficient. At times such as these, government may not always be the best way to turn, yet it provides guidelines. This theme in his essay is just another opinion. Justice cannot be fully defined in one sentence by every person. It depends on the background and the experiences one has had.
Thoreau was against the The Mexican American War and the act of Slavery in our society and was very skeptical towards the U.S government regarding these issues. The U.S government did more to harm the citizens of America more than it did to protect them and Thoreau realized that and was not afraid to speak his mind.. The law will never make men free; it is men who have got to make the law free” Thoreau is saying that don't just wait for change to come, make the change happen. He stand for what is right regardless of the consequences, therefore, he wanted the citizens of America to be bold enough to do the same.
In this short story Thoreau plays the protagonist as well as a pacifist. He continually reiterates his beliefs of law and conscience. Thoreau believes we have a conscience to determine right and wrong and views the government, at a state level at least, as useless. He gives the reader several examples of things the government does that would be against most conscious decisions. Such as: The listing of accomplishments the “government” made possible, included in this list is the repetition of the word “It” referring to the government. “It does not keep the country free. It does not settle the West. It does not educate. The character inherent in the American people has done all that has been accomplished”(221).
Regardless of consequence, Thoreau talks in Civil Disobedience about the importance of acting on your right to revolution. “All men recognize the right of resolution; that is, the right to refuse allegiance to, and to resist, the government, when its tyranny or its inefficiency are great and unendurable” (4) he goes on to state that “A wise man will not leave the right to the mercy of chance, nor wish it to prevail through the power of the majority”
Thoreau explains “There are thousands who are in opinion opposed to slavery and to the war, who yet in effect do nothing to put an end to them; who, esteeming themselves children of Washington and Franklin” (Thoreau 3). George Washington and Benjamin Franklin are two prominent figures of American nationalism and independence, and many American citizens regard them as idols. Thoreau exploits their credential to motivate people to take actions against an ineffective government and oppose the war and slavery in the U.S. Thoreau also questions citizens by explaining what is ethical as a citizen. Thoreau states “but they do nothing in earnest and with effect. They will wait, well disposed, for others to remedy the evil, that they may no longer have it to regret” (Thoreau 4). Thoreau explains that people of the U.S. do not put in their efforts to change such as voting or protesting, yet they still expect other people to discard evils such as corruption, slavery, and government tyranny. Thoreau justifies the uselessness as unethical and condemns the citizens. By using the word such as evil, Thoreau wants people to fight against the evil, government tyranny, and express the true American nationalism. The author employs ethos throughout Civil Disobedience to make the people of the U.S. ethical and become more involved with the problems about the
Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862) was a philosopher and writer who is well known for his criticism of the American government during the time. During Thoreau’s life, there were two major issues being debated in the United States: slavery and the Mexican-American War. Both issues greatly influenced his essay, as he actually practiced civil disobedience in his own life by refusing to pay taxes in protest of the Mexican War. He states that the government should be based on conscience and that citizens should refuse to follow the law and has the duty not to participate and stay as a member of an unjust institution like the government. I argue that the notion of individualism and skepticism toward government is essential in the basis of many important reform movements in the modern society.
To begin with, Thoreau expresses that civil disobedience should be more implemented when the just resistance of the minority is seen legally unjust to the structure conformed by the majority. Supporting his position, Thoreau utilizes the role of the national tax in his time; its use which demoralizes the foreign relationship
In “Civil Disobedience” Thoreau claims that men should act from their conscience. Thoreau believed it was the duty of a person to disobey the law if his conscience says that the law is unjust. He believed this even if the law was made by a democratic process. Thoreau wrote that a law is not just, only because the majority votes for it. He wrote, “Can there not be a government in which the majorities do not virtually decide right and wrong, but conscience?” (Thoreau, P. 4). Thoreau wanted a government in the United States that would make the just laws based on conscience, because the people of the country would not let the elected representatives be unfair. Thoreau did not think people can disobey any law when they want to. He believed that people should obey just laws; however, Thoreau thought that not all laws were right, and he wrote that a man must obey what is right, not what is the law: “It is not desirable to cultivate a respect for the law, so much as for the right. The only obligation which I have a right to assume is to do at any time what I think right” (Thoreau, P. 4).
Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862) was an American philosopher, author, poet, abolitionist, and naturalist. He was famous for his essay, “Civil Disobedience”, and his book, Walden. He believed in individual conscience and nonviolent acts of political resistance to protest unfair laws. Moreover, he valued the importance of observing nature, being individual, and living in a simple life by his own values. His writings later influenced the thoughts of Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr. In “Civil Disobedience” and Walden, he advocated individual nonviolent resistance to the unjust state and reflected his simple living in the nature.
In "Civil Disobedience," Thoreau criticizes the American government for its democratic nature, namely, the idea of majority ruling. Like earlier transcendentalists, such as Ralph Waldo Emerson, Thoreau believes in the importance of the individual. In a society where there are many individuals with conflicting perceptions and beliefs, Emerson chooses passivity and isolation to avoid conflict with others. However, unlike Emerson, Thoreau rejects passivity and challenges his readers to stand up against the government that focuses on majorities over individuals. Thoreau argues that when power is in the hands of the people, the majority rules, "not because they are most likely to be in the right, nor because this seems fairest to the minority, but because they are physically the strongest" (Thoreau 64). Thoreau portrays this very fundamental element of democracy, w...
Thoreau claims the government has failed to bring any development in the country. For instance, it has failed in keeping the country free, has not educated the nation or settled the west. But he claims the American citizens are the one who have done what the nation has accomplished. Thoreau states that he calls for at once better government, but not for at once no government. To get an ideal government according to Thoreau, the citizens should be asked what kind of government that commands their