...The first step in creating peace, and therefor justice, is believing that it can be achieved. Henry David Thoreau did go to jail, but he was jailed for one night because he didn't pay his taxes. That was his way of rebelling against the government. He went on to write about his night at jail to spread his ideas about how the government isn’t forging justice. The American government was using taxes for the Mexican–American War and Thoreau disagreed with the war efforts. He refused give his money to an institution that doesn’t care about what he has to say about social issues. Thoreau was never violent about his ideals. He understood that if he spoke up loud enough, his voice would be heard. That’s exactly why he wrote Civil Disobedience....
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...Civil disobedience is an active refusal to obey certain laws, commands, and demands of a government in a nonviolent way, in hopes to influence the government to change the rules and regulations they had put in place for a single group of people. Henry David Thoreau wrote a book titled "Civil Disobedience"; he wrote this book to protest slavery in the United States and the Mexican-American War. (Why Did Thoreau) He rebelled by not paying taxes because when he paid taxes the funds were going to both events he did not support at all. He stayed true to his morals so much so he was even put in jail for a night. The acts of Thoreau showed the Americans that if nobody spoke up, they could be stuck in the same unjust that they were used to living...
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...Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau were both born in Massachusetts in the early 19th century. Emerson was born in Boston in 1803 and Thoreau was born in Concord in 1817. Both are writers and proponents of Transcendentalism--the belief that man, by studying nature and examining self, can transcend his humanity and become one with God. Both used literary devices in their works (essays), metaphors and have similar themes. Both Thoreau and Emerson used the theme: trust yourself, know yourself, be yourself; slow down and "simplify, simplify, simplify"; examine nature to find truths about yourself; human ingenuity will always show itself; trust self before government; man is inherently good. These two men believe that nature is what forces us not to depend on others' ideas but to develop our own. Nature is ever changing so we must keep searching for explanations about human life. They feel that nature is the key to knowing all. In Emerson’s “Self-Reliance”, social responsibility is important. Similar to “Self-Reliance”, Thoreau’s “Civil Disobedience” shares the same philosophical ideas. Ralph Waldo Emerson’s essay “Self Reliance” and Henry David Thoreau’s essay “Resistance to Civil Government (“Civil Disobedience”), both transcendentalist thinkers speak about being individual and what reforms and changes need to be made in our society Social responsibility is often encouraged and is used to...
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...Sometimes in life there are things we disagree on and were silent about it and we don't give into it and we forget about it, but sometimes we fight back to it and we don't give in to these things and we disagree this is called being disobedient and we do that a lot as kids but if we don't like that as adults and we get tons of people to join in and fight back, we call that civil disobedience. Now in the writings of Henry David Thoreau specifically in his writing of civil disobedience he persuades many people to do the things he did if you want change, he used ethos, logos and pathos to convince people to join him and what he says is very effective in people looking into the government and have second thoughts on it. First, in the story how...
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..."Civil Disobedience" is an analysis of the individual’s relationship to the state that focuses on why men obey governmental law even when they believe it to be unjust. But "Civil Disobedience" is not an essay of abstract theory. It is Thoreau’s extremely personal response to being imprisoned for breaking the law. Because he detested slavery and because tax revenues contributed to the support of it, Thoreau decided to become a tax rebel. There were no income taxes and Thoreau did not own enough land to worry about property taxes; but there was the hated poll tax – a capital tax levied equally on all adults within a community.Thoreau declined to pay the tax and so, in July 1846, he was arrested and jailed. He was supposed to remain in jail until a fine was paid which he also declined to pay. Without his knowledge or consent, however, relatives settled the “debt” and a disgruntled Thoreau was released after only one night. The incarceration may have been brief but it has had enduring effects through "Civil Disobedience." To...
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...made of immigrants, but couldn't it be said that it was founded by civil disobedience? When the founding fathers sent the Declaration of Independence to King George, they were preparing for the ratifications of the document. The founding fathers were preparing for any of King George’s reactions to the document so it could be categorized as civil disobedience and defying the crown. The United States was built on civil disobedience and still to this today continues to be shaped by it; without it the United States would not exist. Civil disobedience is carved into early United States history, like cave man paintings are to human kind. Another, act of civil disobedience in which that shaped our country very early was the Boston Tea Party. King George forced the stamp act upon the colonies, and the colonies did not wish to pay the tax (to pay fund King George’s wars;) so in this famous historical event (a prime...
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...Ivyanne London Dr. Bryan English 2010 7 December 2012 The Bhagavad- Gita: Influence on Civil Disobedience Advocates Civil disobedience can be described as the nonviolent means of bringing about social change. The Bhagavad- Gita is a philosophical poem that attempts to ask difficult questions of universal issues that deal with the topic of civil disobedience. The messages that are told throughout the poem have had major influences on civil disobedience advocates such as Henry David Thoreau, Mahatma Gandhi, and Martin Luther King. This work offers explanations that can be applied to dilemmas that can’t be resolved with a simple form of action. According to the Theosophical Society of America, The Bhagavad- Gita, commonly known as the “Gita” has been passed back and forth between America and India through these civil disobedience activists. They each had influences on each other along with the Gita. Some reoccurring themes that may have influenced Thoreau, Gandhi, and King include questions about the right way to live, seeking higher knowledge, and how no action is still a form of action. The version of The Bhagavad- Gita that is told in The Norton Anthology of World Literature, 3rd edition, begins with the moment of crisis in Arjuna’s mind. Arjuna is the middle son of his five brothers who are apart of the Pandavas. He is apart of the warrior caste and is the most skilled and feared archer of his time. They are about to engage in war with their cousins, the Kauravas, because...
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...Ideal Society Through Thoreau’s and Emerson’s Eyes Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau are considered two of the most influential and inspiring writers of their time. Ralph Waldo Emerson, who was an essayist, and poet, was born on May 25, 1803, and is generally considered the father of American philosophy that rejects the idea that knowledge can be fully derived from experience and observation rather, truth exists in the spiritual world. Henry David Thoreau is his student, who was also a great essayist and critics. Both men extensively studied and embraced nature, and both men encouraged and practiced individualism, nonconformity and freedom. In Ralph Waldo Emerson’s essay “Self Reliance” and Henry David Thoreau’s essay “Civil Disobedience”, both composure thinkers speak about being individual and what changes need to be made in society. Ralph Waldo Emerson and his follower, Henry David Thoreau, both individualists, attacked the religious, political, and cultural values of American society in order to make people aware that they are more important than everything, including government and society. According to Emerson, society is an obstruction against the individuality of its members, “Society is a joint-stock company, in which the members agree, for the better securing of his bread to each shareholder, to surrender the liberty and culture of the eater. The virtue in most requests is conformity”. The solution, for Emerson, is self-reliance, meaning that man is only...
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...What is one’s duty to? Is it to himself or to the society he lives in? In 1841, Henry David Thoreau accepted an offer to stay with neighboring Ralph Waldo Emerson's family and earn his keep as a handyman while he concentrated on his writing. Thoreau began to adapt to and follow Emerson’s belief in transcendentalism, writing many essays about his belief in transcendentalism. In “Civil Disobedience”, he strongly addresses its readers that they should follow their conscious and not be influenced by a government. In his work “Walden”, Thoreau discusses the insignificance of material goods. He also debates the importance of living close to nature, similar to Emerson’s “Nature”. Some may argue that Thoreau's beliefs and ideas are extreme, but in many ways, they are both idealistic and realistic. While not all of his truths can be classified as realistic, they are ideal. (Witherell and Dubrulle)...
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...The act of not conforming to a system that conforms your own beliefs defines the ideas of civil disobedience. Likewise, the notion of civil disobedience is display in Henry David Thoreau’s “On the Duty of Civil Disobedience” and Martin Luther King Jr.’s Letter from Birmingham Jail”. The two essays express a call to action towards the reality of our honest individual thoughts. The thoughts and actions of Thoreau and King have a great influence in America today and the ideas of civil disobedience are still widely spread. Furthermore, Henry David Thoreau’s ideas of civil disobedience have become a reflection of the American citizens. He discusses the importance of civil disobedience, when it becomes necessary. For instance, “But a government in which the majority rule in all cases cannot be based on justice, even as far as men understand it” (Thoreau 941). Similar to a game of chest, a government deciding to become unjust by constructing control over an apparent social division. The government unknowingly then, creates tension among the citizens. Furthermore, “I think we should be men first, and subjects afterward” (Thoreau 941). Individuals are becoming more thorough and coherent before any force...
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...Do You Hear People Sing? — A Brief Analysis of Thoreau’s Civil Disobedience Abstract: Civil disobedience is the valuable spiritual wealth of American spirits. From Henry David Thoreau to Martin Luther King, civil disobedience theory also had developed into a new stage. American people began to commonly accept and practice the civil disobedience theory, which pushed American Civil Rights Movement forward. This essay focuses on the origination of the civil disobedience and briefly introduces its development. Key Words: Civil disobedience Conscience Government 1、 Thoreau’s Imprisonment The Mexican-American war, which started from 1846, was an armed conflict between the United States and Mexico over the territorial dispute of Texas. Most abolitionists and transcendentalists were against this war, because they thought that this war was an act of a bullying government anxious to grab land from a weaker nation. Some even thought this war was a conspiracy of the southern slaveholders. Then Texas admitted slavery, while Mexico forbade slavery. They regarded this war as the expansion of slavery, which could strengthen the influence of the south in federation. Therefore the abolitionists and transcendentalists did their best to resist this war. Among them, Henry David Thoreau was a famous representative. Thoreau did not agree this aggressive war. To resist, he refused to pay the Massachusetts poll tax, which was a “per head” tax imposed on...
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...When it comes to the pretention of Civil Disobedience and what can be seen as acts of indirect and direct civil disobedience. H.A. Bedau and Henry David Thoreau come to mind because of how they both saw things in different light but at a meaningful level they both thought the same about the government even through they expressed there ideals in completely different ways. Their ideas cross on many different paths as to which even Bedau talks about Thoreau in his essay in regards to being “responsible” for your actions. The main premise of Bedau’s argument in his essay of “civil disobedience and personal responsibility for justice” is to compare the idea of what is civil disobedience and who is responsible for the actions. Bedau spends a great...
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...Henry David Thoreau was extremely opposed to the Mexican War and refused to pay taxes by means of protesting slavery. He addresses his experiences and views on civil disobedience, which were also revisited almost a century later in John Steinbeck’s account of the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl, The Grapes of Wrath. This novel reflects Thoreau’s ideas about civil disobedience such as, less government involvement is better, people should make their own laws, and they should work together to fight injustice. One of Thoreau’s principle beliefs is that the less government is involved in community affairs, the better. He is in complete agreement with the claim that “government is best which governs least… [or] which governs not at all” (Thoreau...
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...Michael Dalton Humphries Professor Breedlove English 2131 28 September 2011 The Fight against Social Injustices Henry David Thoreau and Martin Luther king both stood up and fought against social injustices. Thoreau wrote his essay “Civil Disobedience” to express his views on the role of government. Thoreau also expressed his ideas about what men should do to stand up to a government that sought to suppress its citizens. King started reading Thoreau during his school years and adopted his non-violent ways of protest. He molded his actions around Thoreau’s essay and fought for equal rights for the African American community. Both authors sought peaceful means to protest against things they deemed social injustices. In Thoreau’s “Civil Disobedience” and King’s “Letters from a Birmingham Jail” they present the problems with current societies and a peaceful way to bring those problems to the forefront. Thoreau and King both show their selflessness when they sacrificed their personal freedom for an issue. Thoreau was thrown in jail for not paying a poll tax. He refused to pay the tax because; he did not support slavery and the Mexican America war. Although Thoreau’s views in “Civil Disobedience” were his own and he was not trying to push them on anyone, they obviously had a profound impact on Martin Luther King. Writer Michael Mink of Investors Business Daily said this about King, “He was fascinated by the idea of refusing to cooperate with...
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...by the laws of the state without exception. If one feels that the state is immoral or unjust, it is his or her duty to persuade the state to act differently. Henry David Thoreau was a philosopher and a transcendentalist in the mid 1800s. He is well known for his essay, “Civil Disobedience,” which he wrote in response to his one-day prison sentence for committing tax evasion. “Civil Disobedience” covers Thoreau’s definition of the social contract. Thoreau claims it is necessary for one to violate the social contract if complying with it defies his or her own moral codes. The social contract can be seen throughout government systems today. The United States government provides for its citizens; examples include equal treatment, free education, and public safety. In return, its citizens must sacrifice some of their freedoms. They must, for example, pay taxes and follow laws, regardless of whether or not they agree with them. However, at times it may be necessary to follow Thoreau’s beliefs and defy the state’s laws if one feels that they are violating their own moral principles. Socrates' interpretation of the social contract can prove to be less advantageous in practice. Thoreau’s method of civil disobedience is the better of the two versions. Body Section 1 (Support of Claim) Henry David Thoreau wrote “Civil Disobedience” in response to his evasion of his delinquent poll taxes. He refused to pay because he felt it was unjust to fund the Mexican-American war. In doing so, he broke...
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