Civil Disobedience and the Abusive Power of Government
In response to the annexation of Texas in 1845 by the United States, Henry David Thoreau's wrote the essay, Civil Disobedience. Thoreau felt that this purely economic move by the United States expedited the Civil War, which he, and many Americans, disapproved of. In his essay, Thoreau argues that government should not be in control of the people and that the people should be able to rule themselves freely however they please. In addition, he clearly states and points out that in many instances it is best when individual rights take priority over state authority.
Very often, the best authors, whether it be of a novel or an essay, clearly state their opinions and facts using various literary techniques and devices. From reading other Thoreau works, such as excerpts from Walden and Excursions, I was able to infer that he has his own unique, unmatched writing style. Most ordinary and banal writers start their essays with long, tedious descriptions of the point they are trying to convey. But like all great writers and thinkers, Thoreau begins his essay with a strong, captivating sentence: "That government is best which governs least" (222). Thoreau's opening line grabs and lets the reader know what topic(s) the essay will be discussing. As it turns out, this opening sentence is the basis for the rest of his essay as he encourages individuals to take responsibility for keeping the government in constant check. He believes that the best way for a country and its people to survive is if individuals are willing to exert control over the government and not be ruled like sheep.
Part of Thoreau's writing style includes using examples to justify his op...
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...are fighting for. When he talks about the evils of slavery, Thoreau states that "When the majority shall at length vote for the abolition of slavery, it will be because they are indifferent to slavery, or because there is but little slavery left to be abolished by their vote. They will then be the only slaves. Only his vote can hasten the abolition of slavery who asserts his own freedom by his vote" (226). As a dedicated abolitionist, he believes that only individuals hold the power to end slavery. He thinks that you cannot depend on the government to stop slavery because it thinks as a whole, and not as individuals.
As he concludes his essay, Thoreau's main point is that individual power should be greater than that of the government. Thoreau's observation, "That government is best which governs least" continues to be as true today as the day it was written.
eat and keep the children healthy. Margaret, the only girl dies and Frankie's mother and
Living in poverty and not being able to meet basic needs leads the characters to result to desperate measures such as stopping Frank McCourt’s education and taking a job to support the family. Frank is forced to take the job mostly because his father is an alcoholic and uses all the dole money and his wages to buy beer instead of feeding his family. Frank describes this pattern of drinking away the money by saying " When Dad comes home with the drink smell there is no money and Mam screams at him till the Twins cry."(42) This situation lasts until Mr.McCourt leaves to work in England and is never heard from again which forces Frank to take a job at fourteen years old. Frank takes on the role of the head of the family proudly and comments " Its hard to sleep when you know you know the next day you’re fourteen and starting your first job as a man." (p.309) Frank’s ability to provide financial stability leads to greater comfort and living conditions for the family.
There are other factors in determining what rights a person has in a given circumstance. None of her arguments apply to pregnancy in which sex was voluntary and no effort was made to prevent pregnancy. She argues that abortion is permissible in three types of cases: (1) Rape (violinist experiment), (2) Threat to mothers’ life (death), (3) Cases where attempts were made to prevent the pregnancy (failure of contraception). At the end of her paper she says we must not fall below the standard of minimally decent Samaritans (MDS). However, she doesn’t really says what that standard
that the Bible holds that each person who is or has lived, in the universe, has a guardian angel (Matthew 18:10). Additionally, some people who have died may have been transformed into lower angels.
Both CNN and Fox News influence these immense populations with how each utilize pathos, ethos and logos in the topics discussed during the broadcasted show. For example, Fox News 's audience seems to be primarily conservative, while CNN’s audience seem to be more liberal (Engel). So each network’s stories “focus on the issues that” conservatives or liberals “want to watch and talk about” (James). These topics are used to develop a more conservative or liberal fan base in the respective news networks. As the dominant news network on cable television, Fox News impacts the greatest quantity of citizens, bringing in an audience of over two million for primetime (James). Therefore, Fox News influences the largest percentage of Americans listening to news networks by effectively using these manipulative literary techniques. However, CNN has a younger audience than Fox News (Carter), which contributes to CNN’s audience growing from 350,000 a night, in 2013 (Agee), to 629,000 viewers a night (James). CNN and Fox News compete with each other to influence the greatest amount of people and the public’s opinion of current events. Each network appeals to pathos, logos and ethos differently and similarly to coax the greatest amount of listeners each night.
The term angel derives from a Greek translation of the Hebrew word mal'akh, which first meant "Shadow side of God," and now means messenger (Jeremiah 59). Angels as an article of faith have become an unshakeable part of our society. One in every ten popular songs involves angels in some way (Freeman 2). They appear in paintings and in museums as sculptures. Our culture is filled with angels that appear on clothing, cards, or as souvenirs, and jewelry. It would be reasonable to assume that one might find the most information about angels in the Christian bible. However , the bible only mentions three angels by name and actually contains very little information about these beings. Almost all of the information we have about angelic attributes comes from the three great Chronicles of Enoch. In these chronicles Enoch describes his journey to the ten Heavens where he saw angels in heaven's penal and punishment area, punishing sinners. His view was that hell existed in small pockets that were distributed throughout heaven. This view was not consistent with the later Church that believed heaven and hell were two separate places. Because of this, St. Jerome declared these texts apocryphal (Godwin 9). However, a lot of material from these chronicles appears in the New Testament. Though much of what we know currently about what angels are and what they do is based on misconception and myth, the concern of this paper is with the genus Angelus Occidentalis. This is the term used to describe a number of angelic species and sub-species in Judaism, Islam, and Christianity (Godwin 7). The term angel describes not only the benevolent forces of heaven but also the malevolent forces of hell. When Lucifer fell from ...
The belief in angels has been around for a very long time. The gods of the Hittites and Canaanites had their supernatural messengers, and parallels to Old Testament stories of angels are found in Near Eastern literature (Cavendish). Angels are found in many religions throughout many holy books. These religions include Christian, Jewish, Roman Catholic and Islamic. They are known to carry out jobs for God and are mentioned in both the Old Testament and New Testament. Their appearance in pictures has developed over time, starting in the third century (Mercatante). There are seven holy angels that each served a certain purpose. There are also three different choirs or levels of angels. Since the beginning of religion angels have been a part of everyday life and have influenced human beings with their presence.
Henry David Thoreau was a poet, social philosopher, and educator in the early to mid- 1800s (Hampton). He graduated from Harvard University in 1837 and, upon his return to his hometown of Concord, Massachusetts, befriended Ralph Waldo Emerson, also a philosopher and poet (Hampton, “Ralph Waldo Emerson”). Emerson was also the leader of the Transcendentalist movement which was based on the idea that people should lead by example -- social reform begins with the individual, not the government -- and that the movement should be peaceful (Woodlief, Ruehl). Thoreau agreed with this approach until the United States invaded Mexico in May, 1846 (Brown, Witherell). Opposed to slavery, Thoreau saw the invasion of Mexico as an attempt by the government to extend slavery westward. In his essay “On the Duty of Civil Disobedience,” published in 1849 with the original title, “Resistance to Civil Government,” Thoreau protests against the government and states that is a man’s duty to rise up against the government when the government commits a wrong (Thoreau). In his writings, Thoreau uses the three rhetorical approaches of Pathos, Ethos, and Logos in his attempts to persuade his readers to his point of view (Heinrichs).
Angela’s Ashes, by Frank McCourt is a genuine memoir that vividly tells the story of a young, Irish Catholic boy during the 1930’s and early 1940’s. Frank’s memory of his impoverished childhood is difficult to accept, however, he injects a sense of devilish humor into his biography. He creates a story where the readers watch him grow beyond all odds and live through the pinnacle of the miserable Irish Catholic childhood. “People everywhere brag and whimper about the woes of their early years, but nothing can compare with the Irish version: the poverty, the shiftless loquacious alcoholic father; the pious defeated mother moaning by the fire; pompous priests; bullying schoolmasters; the English and the terrible things they did to us for eight hundred long years”(McCourt 11). His interaction with his family proves that despite the hunger and pain, love and strength come out of misery. Although the book tells the experience of an individual, the story itself is universal.
"When I look back on my childhood I wonder how I managed to survive at all. It was, of course, a miserable child hood: the happy childhood is hardly worth your while. Worse than the ordinary miserable childhood Is the miserable Irish childhood, and worse yet is the miserable Irish Catholic childhood", writes Frank McCourt of his early life. Although Frank McCourt's autobiography, Angela's Ashes, paints a picture of both terrible poverty and struggles, this text is appealing and up lifting because of its focus on both humor and hope. McCourt's text shows the determination people living in dreadful conditions must have in order to rise above their situations and make better lives for themselves and their families. The effect of the story, although often distressing and sad, is not depressing. Frank as the young narrator describes his life events without bitterness, anger, or blame. Poverty and hardship are treated simply as if they are a fact of life, and in spite of the hard circumstances, many episodes during the novel are hilarious.
In addition, The New Testament treats the corrupt conduct of the Fallen Angels as fact, as stated in the Book of Jude 1:6; which became accepted within Judaism as a reality. Predominantly, the early Church Fathers also supported the Enochian writings. For example, Justin Martyr ascribed all evil to demons, whom he alleged to be the offspring of the angels, who fell through their lust for women; directly referencing the Enochian writings. Another Church Father named Origen (AD 186-255), which occurred as a scholar of Clement, believed that angels could embody as men. Similarly, this belief grew through time, especially among the Church Fathers, who also believed in the embodiment of evil fallen angels/demons and the warfare going on between those of the spiritual
Believing in the Angels of God is the second article of faith in Islam. These angels are purely spiritual and glorious beings created by God. These angels are sinless. They require no food, drink or sleep. They have neither physical desires or material needs (“Islamic Path”). The angels spend their time in the amenity of God. Each angel is given a specific obligation. Each human being is assigned two angels who serve as guardians and recorders of the individual’s deeds, both good and bad (“Islamic Path”). Even though we cannot see the angels with ou...
Through the parallelism of past and present feelings, the reader sees the confusion that Hang feels. Hang struggles with her feelings toward her Aunt. While Hang does love her Aunt, she does not understand Aunt Tam’s motive to help her. Tam’s persistence for Hang to continue family rituals and shrines confuses Hang. Hang does not understand the importance of these things to Aunt Tam. Unlike Aunt Tam, Hang does not believe in all of the Vietnamese traditions. This is Hang’s first step to finding her self-purpose. This also allows the reader to see Hang’s feelings towards cultural events and shows the shift in Vietnamese culture. The use of no flashbacks during Aunt Tam’s funeral and funeral planning show that Hang has never felt the way she has. At this time in the novel Hang has found her own purpose therefore flashbacks cannot be used to portray Hang’s feelings and
Included in Old Testament theology is the belief in angels. Devotion to the angels and in particular, to St. Michael, dates to the very early beginnings of the Church. An angel is a pure spirit created by God and it is given to certain spiritual beings or intelligences of heavenly residence. “Angel" comes from the Greek angelos, which means 'messenger'.
Angels or angelic-like beings are mentioned in many other religions including several middle-eastern religions, often as animal spirit guides in native American or pagan cultures. However, the majority of angels are reported by people of Catholic or Christian (Protestant) faiths.