Henry David Thoreau And The Role Of Government Essay

In “Civil Disobedience”, Henry David Thoreau presents the idea that our current government is no longer serving the people and the only way we can work to improve it is through civil disobedience. Thoreau begins by explaining his discontentment with the American government. He states “that [a person] cannot without disgrace be associated with [the American government]. I cannot for an instant recognize that political organization as my government which is the slave’s government also” (1). Thoreau is saying that he is ashamed of the American government and will not associate with a government that permits slavery. He goes on to say, the ways that the State has provided to change the law “take too much time, and a man’s life will be gone...It

In Henry David Thoreau’s Civil Disobedience, he is writing to the American people. He is trying to spark a desire for change, for people to oppose their government without actions. He uses this work to criticize the American institution of slavery as well as the Mexican-American War. Thoreau is attempting to convey the importance of listening to one’s conscience over the laws, believing that it is more important to do what they feel is right rather than listen to the laws given by the majority. Thoreau feels that people should protest against their government, but not using violent actions. He is trying to persuade the people to voice their opinions and break the chain of majority rule. Thoreau is writing during the time of the war between the United States and Mexico, which took place between 1846 and 1848. He writes to oppose the government’s actions and policies during this time period. He refused to pay a tax that would support the war and was imprisoned for a day. Thoreau uses ethos, logos, and pathos to persuade his audience to agree with his view of the American government and to voice their oppositions.

According Thoreau’s Civil Disobedience, he mentions that to require civil disobedience, the circumstances must be like America’s. Circumstances like practicing war, deriving power from the people, having unjust laws, and supporting slavery. Thoreau writes, “must the citizen ever for a moment, or in the least degree, resign his conscience to the legislation?” (Thoreau ). He mentions how no man should be subdued to any government or institution, especially if it portrays unjust. Therefore he also implies that if a law exhibits unjust, the population should not follow the law with the knowledge of the consequence. Similarly, Thoreau establishes, “when . . . a whole country is unjustly overrun and conquered by a foreign army, and subjected to military law, I think that it is not too soon for honest men to rebel and revolutionize,” (Thoreau ). He explains how it expresses the duty of Americans to rebel and use civil disobedience, it is not just a right, but it drives Americans to be aware of and completely use for the advantage of society. Thoreau further explains the unlawful government by stating, “I cannot for an instant recognize that political organization as my government which the slave's government also,” (Thoreau ). He describes the circumstance of America as a prejudiced institution, which rightfully allows citizens to use their duty of civil disobedience. A government should require unjust laws, slavery, aggressive law, and strength over intelligence to cause civil disobedience. However, civil disobedience a citizen’s duty and they must maintain it.

Henry David Thoreau wrote Civil Disobedience, which is about him trying to persuade citizens that their obligation is to contravene and correct the unfair laws of the government. Thoreau begins Civil Disobedience with the view point “That government is best which governs least”

In Thoreau's Civil Disobedience, he argues that when civil laws conflict with an individual's morality, the individual should follows his conscience. Thoreau like many Transcendentalists felt a less involved government was best. Thoreau wrote, "That government is best which governs not at all." Obviously, Thoreau realized that he could afford to take this open opinion on government because of the American government. But he felt that government's authority should be limited to physical matters of the country, such as infrastructure and orderliness. He felt a government that become involved in moral matters such as sobriety and slavery was a government over-stepping its boundaries. Ultimately, Thoreau and other transcendentalists felt a utopian society would be the best.

“They think that, if they should resist, the remedy would be worse than the evil. But it’s the fault of the government itself that the remedy is worse than the evil. It makes it worse.” In this quote from his essay Resistance to Civil Government, Thoreau defines the folly of thinking that perturbs the everyday citizen, that if they rebel, they will receive punishment for standing up for what they believe in, and that the consequences are not worth the plight. Thus, he implores that it is the government's fault that this change cannot take place, for the fallacy is in fact that our country was built on average citizens standing up against the British taxing the colonists unfairly, therefore our own government has impeded the change that laid the groundwork for the nation that we are today, and also were at the time this was written. Thoreau believes in the imperative duty of the citizens to stand up to the injustice of government, despite the consequences, due to our own personal moral duty to ourselves and our fellow man. In this essay, Thoreau states, at least three things that he wants the reader to do, and they are: take moral responsibility for doing the right thing despite the government wishes, avoid association with the government, and to disobey unjust laws.

Henry David Thoreau uses Aristotle’s appeals in his essay “Civil Disobedience” to convey his beliefs and to convince others to think how he does. He wants people to realize how truly flawed the American system of government is, he does this by showing how he has been personally wronged by the government and how he knows the government can take control of you.

Thoreau’s essay represents his beliefs about the government in 1849. He uses several logos with credible examples, and uses the emotions of the audience to support his argument. The first example of logos he uses is when he says, “The objections which have been brought against a standing army, and they are many and weighty, and deserve to prevail, may also at last be brought against a standing government.” His claim is that it is unconstitutional to have an army standing or ready when everything is peaceful. The government should act under this same rule; if there is peace then the government should not be standing so to speak. Throughout the essay he continues to provide credible examples of why the government abuses its power and is useless; such as when he says “Yet this government never of itself furthered any enterprise, but by the alacrity with which it got out of its way. 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; and it would have done somewhat more, if the government had not sometimes got in its

Henry David Thoreau, an American essayist, philosopher, and historian around the 1800s, composed “Civil Disobedience” to uncover the rapid downfall of the American Government. Thoreau highlights “That Government does best when it does not govern at all”; and when the men are most ready for It, that will be the type of Government they will have, a Government-free one (Thoreau 1). Thoreau expresses his bravery in his writing to bear his nationalistic attitude, showing his hostility towards the American Government during that time; he asserts that the Government, in it’s present state is sinister and corrupted because the Government favors slavery and the Mexican war. Throughout his explanations, Thoreau argues that the American citizens should take complete control by being the true leaders of the government and not allow the Government to rescind or decay their consciences. To grab the reader’s attention and to lead them to a new kind of nationalism and it’s circumstance, Thoreau exquisitely makes use of the rhetorical elements of ethos, logos, and pathos.

Resistance to Civil Government (Civil Disobedience) is an essay written based on his disproval’s and arguments about mistreatment from the government. Within Henry David Thoreau essay, he points out his views on how he sees people getting treated for being different. Henry David Thoreau believed that people should fight for their rights like everyone other citizens has. Henry David Thoreau illustrates in his essay, “But a government in which the majority rule in all cases cannot be based on justice, even as far as men understand it” . Henry David Thoreau sees and knows that the government has no justice towards the people, those who get their rights see it as

In Thoreau’s “Resistance to Civil Government” the main idea of government is best when it has little to no say in society is embodied in the first sentence of his writing “that government is best which governs least”. This idea is a reoccurring them within his article and some people such as liberalists still believe that a good government would be one that governs the least. The idea of the government having little control over the country has many implications to it and it would affect many things from how business is run to how the government itself is chosen. Thoreau says that government should have little control over society because if government didn’t have so much control over everything the conscience of people would win rather than

“That government is best which governs least”, a quote from Henry David Thoreau. This quotes reflects directly on the idea of what Thoreau believes “A better Government” would be like. Within the literary work, “Civil Disobedience” Thoreau makes multiple points of reference to what the government needs to improve. Thoreau himself says that the government should govern less, in making that change they would become more successful in its endeavors.

In his essay “On the Duty of Civil Disobedience”, Thoreau expresses his discontent for the lack American people’s lack of action against the nation’s injustice after his imprisonment for refusing to pay a poll tax. He establishes his argument by first acknowledging that government will always be flawed because it is a human institution and declaring that people should follow their conscience rather than blindly follow any government. In the fourth paragraph, he explains his reasoning “Must the citizen ever for a moment… resign his conscience to the legislator? Why has every man a conscience, then? I think that we should be men first, and subjects afterward. It is not desirable to cultivate a respect for the law, so much as for the right.” Thoreau encourages his reader to follow his conscience even to the point of rebelling against the government should its actions violate the conscience of the individual. In the first half of the essay, he asserts that disagreeing with unjust legislation while paying taxes to the government enacting such legislation makes one guilty of injustice himself. Thoreau’s assertion that simply disagreeing with a government’s practices has no effect in actually stopping the government from continuing them remains true today. However, the divisive political climate has driven people to adhere to their political beliefs far more tenaciously and both sides have a large number of followers. If people were to cease obeying the government in favor of following their own beliefs, the federal government would struggle to collect enough money in tax revenue, so his method of rebellion would not work today. The essay was not difficult to read as Thoreau wrote it for the general public to read and understand his ideas, but due to its length, it may be helpful to break it into sections. The first half of the essay would benefit the Wit Lit and rhetoric unit as Thoreau uses it to establish a strong argument, and sections of the essay could serve as prompts for students to annotate in the AP Bootcamp unit. Furthermore, Thoreau attempts to better define the qualities of a good citizen and the role of a government, making this essay useful for the Definition by Example unit.

American philosopher, Henry David Thoreau, believed if the government does not make an effort into improving itself, then no one should be obligated to support it. An ideal citizen would find unjust laws and fight against injustice and stand for what they believe in. Thoreau argued that democracies only served the desires of the ore influential groups of people rather than the more concerned and thoughtful. It is more important to develop a respect for the person’s right, rather than respect for the law that is deemed unjust. Thoreau wrote that man would serve the state making “no free exercise whatever of the judgement or of the moral sense… are commonly esteemed good citizens”(3). He defines this as expressing his beliefs that people should not allow the government to overrule their principles. A citizen should make it a duty to avoid and fight against injustice in the world. Thoreau opens Civil Disobedience with the motto ”That government is best which governs least,” and speaks in favor of a government that does not intrude in a person’s life and gives them freedom (Thoreau 303).

“‘That government is best which governs not at all’“ The government according to Thoreau should stay out of the people’s way. “... they would be deserve to be classed and punished with those mischievous persons who put obstructions on the railroads.” Thoreau is saying how the government is just as low as the people to try to ruin the railroads. Individual rights should be what governs man, not all the bs rules and laws they expect us to follow. If we made choices made on personal judgement without the chance of breaking the law we’d be better off, or that’s what Thoreau believes. I believe that if people weren’t so hard headed, and broke the law just to get their point across, we would all see a better governed life. The government is only