FREE ESSAY ON CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE

CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE

Henry David Thoreau was justified in writing Civil Disobedience. Civil Disobedience
portrayed the problems of the newly formed government. Even though the United States was
making great political progress, slavery was still legal in the southern states. This
issue needed to be resolved and Thoreau took a step towards correcting the problem.
Civil Disobedience originated when Henry Thoreau refused to pay taxes on a Massachusetts
street on the way to the cobbler. Thoreau was arrested and taken to jail where he wrote
the famous essay. That day has assumed such a symbolic importance that when we look back
it is surprising how trivial the incident actually was. His small defiance of the state
assumed such importance because it set the line of thought which led him to write Civil
Disobedience.
Thoreau protested the law through his writing. He regarded the Mexican war of 1846
immoral. He drew attention to the fact that even though slavery was abolished in
Massachusetts; its laws provided for the return of fugitive slaves to the southern states
where slavery still prevailed. He argued we shouldn't develop laws just for luxuries of
enjoying them. To give laws meaning we must follow them no matter how we may offend
public opinion.
Thoreau states,  Unjust laws exist: shall we be content to obey them, or shall we
endeavor to amend them, and obey them until we have succeeded, or shall we transgress
them at once? (p.7) He thinks that if the laws only cause personal inconvenience it is
better to put up with them, but if they force us to perform acts of injustice against
other people he is saying we should break the law. He makes it very clear that a man
should follow his conscience and ignore the law when the two conflict.
Thoreau stresses the reasons why men should seek to govern their own actions by justice
rather than by legality. He feels that a man's sense of justice is above the laws imposed
by society. Men should be responsible to question law and authority if one senses it is
morally wrong. Civil Disobedience encourages the use of reason and independent judgement.
It also stresses that a man should be able to withstand physical suffering without
causing harm to others while protesting unjust laws.
Thoreau argues that For it matters not how small the beginning may seem to be: what is
once well done is done forever. But we love better to talk about it: that we say is our
mission. (p.9) He shows how hypocritical the American people are. Men talk about ceasing
to hold slaves and to reform, but as actual individuals men don't want to take action;
they do not want to risk being thrown in jail. In this paragraph Thoreau is trying to
demonstrate that if the community takes steps towards ending slavery rather than just
talking about the issue, the problem would be solved.
I saw that, if there was a wall of stone between me and my townsmen, there was a still
more difficult one to climb or break through, before they could get to be as free as I
was. I did not for a moment feel confined, the walls seemed a great waste of stone and
mortar.(p12) Thoreau was comfortable in jail. He realized he was freer than the men
outside the jail were. He had taken the needed steps to free his conscience. Thoreau felt
that going to jail is not necessarily as bad as it might seem to be. Going to jail will
draw the attention of men of goodwill to the evil principal that is taking place. The act
might help to bring about a repeal of the law. Or if enough men go to jail, their acts
will encourage the government to change the corrupt laws.
Civil Disobedience was an essay that rose from the hatred of slavery. The message of
Thoreau is valuable. It serves as a constant reminder that when a man's belief
contradicts with society's ideas, it is important to follow the individual belief.
Thoreau felt his fellow citizens were loosing their souls. They permitted their money to
be used for slavery. They were more interested in commerce and agriculture than they were
in humanity. He felt they needed to realize the injustice and protest taxes that went to
support slavery.
Thoreau advocated disobedience directed toward the government. He took an individual
approach by refusing to pay his taxes. The small incident escalated to influence
generations. The US was born in disobedience; our founding fathers fled England to escape
religious persecution. We must be aware of blind obedience and respect the individual
conscience
Bibliography
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