Essays on Civil Disobedience

Martin Luther King Jr once stated, “One has a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws.” In this quote, he was invoking the principle of civil disobedience. He wasn't justifying breaking laws just because, but instead, meant that the law is broken in hopes that people...

Civil disobedience can be defined in a number of different ways: in its most raw form, “civil disobedience is the refusal to comply with certain laws or to pay taxes and fines, as a peaceful form of political protest because of moral objections to said...

In his Essay, “Civil Disobedience”, Henry David Thoreau argues that society functions the most efficiently when it is not ruled by an overpowering monarch, or by a strong central government, but by the people, essentially having self-reliant peoples that do not necessarily need a government,...

Understanding Civil Disobedience We all encounter at least one instance in our lives when we are told to do something that seems to go against our moral code. Unfortunately for most of us, we will end up doing these things due to some authoritative figure...

When the law does not seem just it should give us citizens a right to break the law. When breaking the law one should know the punishment. Civil disobedience is an act of intentionally breaking a law or refusing to cooperate with the government. If...

Civil disobedience is the term for refusing to follow certain laws in a peaceful form of political protest. With a diverse use of literary devices like, rhetorical question, allusions, and imagery, authors like Henry David Thoreau, Martin Luther King Jr. , and Sophocles, are able...

When I was 13, I learned there are certain topics someone shouldn’t mention to other people. The three forbidden topics: politics, sex, religion. People don’t mention these topics for how personal they are but by how controversial they can be. If opinions clash into each...

Disobedience can influence a person and show them a new way of thinking or a new solution. Throughout centuries people have participated in disobedience in order to achieve a goal. Disobedience is a form of feeling, and is a feeling humans get when they feel...

Who knows where our society would be without individual defiance? In the past, there have been a number of advocates of disobedience, that support the future of societal progression. These advocates were the only ones willing to take a stand against the injustices when no...

Disobedience happens when contrast between one’s inner beliefs and society’s norms collide. However, it can be seen as a starting act for an individual. A start of an action which has its alliance with Emerson’s Transcendentalism. Such transcendentalism in America gradually, allows separation towards the...

Gandhi’s civil disobedience campaigns of the 1920’s and 1930’s were pivotal factors in attaining independence. Gandhi, a “central figure in the relationship of Congress and the Raj” was able to awaken Indians into political movements. However, he was “interested primarily in social matters”. It was...

I heartily accept the motto, “That government is best which governs least”; and I should like to see it acted up to more rapidly and systematically. Carried out, it finally amounts to this, which also I believe- “That government is best which governs not at...

Henry David Thoreau, the author of Civil Disobedience, clearly shows signs of being a rebel. He has many negative views and ideas on government, with a focus on American government as well. Thoreau believes that the government is not supposed to essentially fulfill their job....

Acceptable Methods of Protest in America The United States of America is a country that is run by a democratic government, in order to protect the rights and liberties of the citizens in its discourse community. When social issues arise, citizens have the right to...

At the beginning of “Civil Disobedience,” Thoreau expresses agreement with the idea “that government is best which governs least”. When carried to its logical conclusion, this concept leads to the realization “that government is best which governs not at all”. Thoreau believes government is the...

“Disobedience is the true foundation of liberty. The obedient must be slaves”. Henry Thoreau wrote this statement in his essay “On the Duty of Civil Disobedience” that corresponds to his book “Walden”. The disobedience he refers to in this quote is civil disobedience that he...

Slavery was the primary provoking factor that made a Civil War break out in the U.S. This was because there was a clear distinction between Northern Abolitionists and people in the South who heavily relied on slavery, because they were required for their agricultural based...

Negritude was both a literary and ideological movement led by French speaking black writer’s intellectuals from France colonies in Africa and the Caribbean. The movement is marked by its rejection of European colonization and its rule in the African diaspora, pride in ‘blackness’ and traditional...

The Stoic way of life described in Epictetus’s Enchiridion (135 A.C.E.) is characterized by a freedom from anxiety and being highly aware of the limitations of humanity. The Enchiridion is a list of 52 principles that, by following them, would allow one to become as...

Non-Violent Direct Action (King) Non- violent direct action according to Martin Luther King is to create a tension using the four steps listed below in the community so people cannot ignore the injustice that is happening. King lists four steps to non-violent direct action: 1....

There is an old saying that states that one should not build a house on sand; instead, one should always build a house on solid ground. Using this phrase as a metaphor in order to discuss the foundations of government, one can allude to the...

In today’s world, religion is one of the most important things that influence the way a person lives their life. Whether it’s waiting until marriage for sexual relations or deciding to not murder that coworker who always steals lunches, many people have their own religion...

Henry Thoreau- Civil Disobedience Pre-reading Questions Thoreau thinks that the most ethical and moral government is one that does not exist. Thoreau believes “that government is best which governs not at all”. Thoreau believes it is up to the people to become moral and ethical...

America has long been recognized as a democratic nation, a nation operating under the will of the people. The forefathers of America fought incessantly against British tyranny to start anew in a land of freedom and opportunity. Because America revived the ancient Greek ideology of...

In Henry David Thoreau’s “ Civil Disobedience” and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” the authors examine the notion of disobeying the government in the case of moral injustice. Thoreau writes about his reasoning for defying the law and calls on other...

Civil disobedience is breaking a law that isn’t agreed with. Henry Thoreau, a transcendentalist, encouraged peaceful civil disobedience. The law must be something that many people find bad and they all must act against it, whether it be not paying taxes or petitioning. Thoreau, himself,...