Civil Disobedience Emerson Analysis

In the two essays “Self Reliance” and “Civil Disobedience, written Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau respectively, the two 19th century transcendentalists speak about what it means to be an individual and how society can be changed for the better. While both authors stress the need for nonconformity and individuality, the essays differ on the details. In “Self Reliance”, Emerson goes on to talk about the American sense of individuality. He makes the claim that the traditions of old are a way for people to live vicariously through the lives of previous people. He states boldly, “Imitation is suicide.” Emerson advocates for being an individual, to stop following and to start leading. Both Emerson and Thoreau believe that one can learn
the most about themselves through isolation from others, and by staying away from society at large. Emerson believes that through solitude, one can listen to the rational voice of the self away from society, which he defines as “a conspiracy against the manhood of every one of its members.” Thoreau has huge qualms about the government, about its corruption, illegitimacy, and the effect it has on the mind of the public. Thoreau believes the US government is not just a little corrupt, but an entity entirely corrupt in its endeavors. He says to be pay taxes is one way well intentioned people support total injustice. To claim to think the war in Mexico and slavery are unjust and to support the US Government by paying them taxes to support these things, Thoreau believes, is a total contradiction. At the heart of these essays, both of these thinkers want people to be free from shackles that society and government impose on their minds, start thinking for themselves, and become better people through learning about themselves. “There will never be a really free and enlightened State until the State comes to recognize the individual,” says Thoreau. “Nothing can bring you peace but yourself,” responds Emerson. I agree.