Henry David Thoreau's Theory Of Civil Disobedience

Civil disobedience has been shown in a great amount of different ways throughout the years. Martin Luther king Jr. expressed his way of civil disobedience by taking direct action but in a calm way which was effective. He wanted the people to be aware of what was going on and open doors for better groups of people who weren't given the same rights as others. Henry David Thoreau on the other hand took action as well but in a different manner directly with the U.S. citizens and government because he wanted more individual rights for the people. Both had the same ideas but took action in different ways and at the end, ended up succeeding in their persuasive ways.

Civil disobedience comes in every package under the sun. Whether it be Henry David Thoreau refusing to pay his taxes to protest the Mexican-American War or Mohammed Ali refusing the draft because he believed that they were sending him to fight for rights in another country that he didn’t have in his own. The importance of civil disobedience, particularly in those with influence over the people, is often overshadowed by opposition leaders and naysayers on the other side of the argument. But civil disobedience has kept America moving forward for over 240 years and it won’t be stopping any time soon.

The  Civil Rights Movement is a substantial example of civil disobedience for the reason that  they were peacefully protesting while accepting their consequences.  On the other hand, people today believe that they're protesting peacefully however, peace can lead to violence and take away the credibility of their cause. Causing destruction in their community, where civil disobedience impacts society negatively because the situations get out of hand that cause chaotic cases which involves brutality.

Civil disobedience allows citizens in the free society of the United States to express their opinions in a way that is sure to evoke governmental attention, while enlightening the public

Civil disobedience is one of the most important cornerstones of the rights of the American people. Although it is dangerous at time and can often be less effective that violent protest, its benefits can neither be negated nor ignored. There have been several different individuals throughout history who have used the idea of civil disobedience to fight for their individualized causes. Rosa parks fought for the rights of black people, as well as women everywhere. The individuals who participated in the Boston Tea Party fought for the freedom and rights of the new colonists in America. Susan B. Anthony fought for the political and societal rights of women everywhere.

Throughout American history are many examples of civil disobedience, and when we analyze the meaning of civil disobedience we realize that without this America would be a very different place. The Boston Tea Party, The Revolutionary War, The Civil Rights Movement are all a few major examples of civil disobedience that have shaped America into the world it is today. Civil disobedience, in a sense, is taking the law into ones own hands when they feel that the laws in place are unjust or unethical and want to change these laws to better ones own life and those of others. Sadly though, there are many lives on this Earth that cannot take the law into their hands, stand up for their rights, and change things for the better, and those lives are the

Civil disobedience is the active, professed refusal to obey certain laws, demands, and commands of a government, or of an occupying international power respectfully. I believe that this is good for a country as long as it is done peacefully and respectfully. It helps our country to see what is wrong with our laws, government, and country. One of the most famous examples of civil disobedience is when Rosa Parks was arrested for not giving up her seat on a bus to a white person. At this time black people were being segregated against. The law required that black people had to give up their seat for white people. This law was obviously morally wrong and unfair. Rosa Parks knew that refusing to give her seat up was against the law. However, she

Nineteenth century America was an eventful time in history. It saw the second conflict between both the British and the American armies in the War of 1812, the arrival of the Industrial Revolution, the agreement that Manifest Destiny was a legitimate reason for westward expansion, the heated debate on the African slave trade that culminated in the American Civil War, the loss of one of the greatest presidents in U.S. history, Abraham Lincoln, and, more fittingly for this paper, the emergence of American transcendentalist writers. One writer in particular was Henry David Thoreau, who many historians consider to be the inventor of nonviolent protest as a means of reforming a government. This concept is explained in detail in his piece, Civil

In a free society, civil disobedience can bring to light certain ideas that others might not think of with their own sets of beliefs, offering another perspective to consider when deciding just how to govern a country. Looking back in our own history, our country has been formed through civil disobedience, observing acts such as the Rosa Parks incident which had fueled the Civil Rights movements years ago; even looking as far back at the Tea Party, in which that certain event had led to our eventual freedom from Great Britain. However, in our current society, certain acts that people label as 'Civil Disobedience' are actually acts that set us back as a country in terms of acceptance and forward progress.

Throughout history Civil Disobedience has had nothing but positive impacts for our nation. The people are trying to improve the government the only way they know how. In 1847 Henry David Thoreau, a philosopher, wrote in his essay on civil disobedience “I ask, for not at once no government, but at once a better government.” A great example for a leap for rights would be the Montgomery Bus Boycott. On December 5th of 1955, African Americans took a vow not to take the bus as a silent and peaceful protest for segregation seating, this lasted 381 days. Finally, the U.S Supreme Court integrated their bus system. The boycott was only the start of the American Civil Rights Movement. Segregation was a big problem that we don't see much these days because people

Another example of Civil disobedience can be found during the civil rights movement in the United States. Characters such as Martin Luther King became hero's of the nation and successfully removed racial inequality from the United States by using Civil Disobedience. Martin Luther King was sent to prison for his actions against his actions, although when King wrote letters protesting (in a peaceful manner) against the unjust reason he was sent to jail for, the population of the United States became consolidated and fought for the rights of every United States citizen and demanded equal rights. Dr. King always told the protesters to never fight

However, in the modern day, civil disobedience has been used to protest in different ways. One of the most recent examples is the sit-in that happened on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives in June, 2016. Several members of the Democratic party organized the sit-in to push for gun control laws to be implemented. While the members were not being oppressed, the sit-in certainly brought attention to the issue and showed the power of civil disobedience. While their actions were not entirely illegal, the sit-in halted government progress for over a day and did raise awareness to their cause, much like the civil disobedience demonstrated by Rosa Parks and MLK

Civil disobedience has been responsible for some of the most important steps forward in our nation's history, and will continue to be a positive force for change well into the future. The greatest example of this came during the Civil Rights movement. Beginning with Rosa Parks' gallant stand on the bus in Montgomery, the Civil Rights Movement was a perfect example of the power of standing up against

I believe that peaceful resistance to laws both positively and negatively impacts a free society. Civil disobedience is the refusal to obey certain laws and government demands one considers unjust, and accepting the consequences. The first amendment prohibits Congress to enact any law that would intervene with any person's civil rights. Though everybody knows this, why are there discussions about what people can and cannot refuse to do. Some people refuse to do things because it goes against their faith, which as stated earlier is allowed according to the first amendment. While others refuse to see what is right in front of them, in the very center of the Declaration of Independence.

After reading “Civil Disobedience” by Henry David Thoreau, I believe that this historic piece of literature can still have a substantial impact upon the current beliefs of the American people. The reason that this essay has such significance to America is because this essay addresses the proper way to go about civil disobedience in addition to providing education about the nature of civil disobedience. I believe the most significant message that this essay could teach Americans is expressed in this quote, “A wise man will not leave the right to the mercy of chance, nor wish it to prevail through the power of the majority.” This quote expresses the need to not just believe in a cause but to actively support it. This is in contrast to a wide spread phenomenon called false activism that is prominent in society. We all know someone who is, and for the most part all of us are guilty of seeing a cause online, claiming to support it, and then not doing a single thing to progress the cause. For example, most everyone you talk to would claim to strongly support more environmentally friendly methods of gathering energy yet the majority of us have not done anything to progress the cause of green energy.