How Does Henry David Thoreau Use Rhetoric In Civil Disobedience
The essay Civil Disobedience, written by Henry David Thoreau has much to do with Thoreau’s own experiences than a general perception of people as a whole. Thoreau, a stellar student from Harvard believed one key idea: change begins with the individual. With this belief Thoreau in 1846 spoke out against the Mexican American War and slavery. His response resulted in the deliberate obliviousness to his taxes. In July of 1846 Thoreau was arrested for not paying his taxes and spent a night in Jail. During this time Thoreau wrote about the laws enforced by the government must be based on conscience rather than majority appeal.
Thoreau applies rhetoric in his proclamation against the government, “It does not keep the country free. It does not
settle the West. It does not educate”(). Thoreau skillfully employs Anaphora, which has each new sentence begin with the same word. By repeating the word it, the audience sees anaphora as a means for Thoreau to emphasize the shortcomings of the American government. However, anaphora highlights many other key ideas consisted in this essay. In this essay Thoreau claims “it [Action from Principal] is essentially revolutionary, and does not consist wholly with anything which was. It not only divides states and churches, it divides families; ay, it divides the individual, separating the diabolical in him from the divine” (). Thoreau uses anaphora as a means to distinguish between right and wrong, and using this distinction for people to reject unjust laws. Furthermore, by requesting a call for action, Thoreau notices that people need to act based on their morals. In both uses of anaphora, it is evident that the use of the rhetoric serves to emphasize that government should be based on the people’s morals.
Thoreau uses praeteritio, a form of rhetoric in which the author states what he will not express what he shall say, but continues to describe what he will not do. In the essay Thoreau explains “If there were one who lived wholly without the use of money, the State itself would hesitate to demand it of him. But the rich man — not to make any invidious comparison — is always sold to the institution which makes him rich (). Thoreau claims that the rich have become rich by practicing the rules set by the government and therefore will follow the government strictly. In this process the rich lose their own moral beliefs (). By declaring he will not make comparisons, he inadvertently expresses the very comparison he claims he does not want to generate. Thoreau asserts the thoughts that he wants the readers to pay attention to: people will continue to follow the institution they succeed at and losing their virtues along the way. This idea is the bases for his argument in which he is able to condemn the rich for not following their morals. Praeterito allows Thoreau to emphasize that people need to make a government that has morals. The audience notices that praeterito is used effectively since it enhances the meaning
Thoreau also uses the rhetoric device of Hypophora multiple times in this essay. One such instance is when he asks “Shall we not have the advantage of his wisdom and honesty, nevertheless?” (). He replies with that there are no more respectable men in this country (). This is an example of Hypophora since Thoreau answers his own question. Furthermore, Thoreau uses this question as a springboard to further his own claims and arguments regarding the people’s duties. Thoreau claims that the people should form their own thoughts about issues, and stand up against perceived wrongs. Thoreau uses Hypophora to point out the problems he has with the people in the American government. With this rhetorical device, Thoreau offers a solution to the problem. In this case, he requests people to start forming their own thoughts and search for the wrongs in society.
Thoreau applies rhetoric in his proclamation against the government, “It does not keep the country free. It does not
settle the West. It does not educate”(). Thoreau skillfully employs Anaphora, which has each new sentence begin with the same word. By repeating the word it, the audience sees anaphora as a means for Thoreau to emphasize the shortcomings of the American government. However, anaphora highlights many other key ideas consisted in this essay. In this essay Thoreau claims “it [Action from Principal] is essentially revolutionary, and does not consist wholly with anything which was. It not only divides states and churches, it divides families; ay, it divides the individual, separating the diabolical in him from the divine” (). Thoreau uses anaphora as a means to distinguish between right and wrong, and using this distinction for people to reject unjust laws. Furthermore, by requesting a call for action, Thoreau notices that people need to act based on their morals. In both uses of anaphora, it is evident that the use of the rhetoric serves to emphasize that government should be based on the people’s morals.
Thoreau uses praeteritio, a form of rhetoric in which the author states what he will not express what he shall say, but continues to describe what he will not do. In the essay Thoreau explains “If there were one who lived wholly without the use of money, the State itself would hesitate to demand it of him. But the rich man — not to make any invidious comparison — is always sold to the institution which makes him rich (). Thoreau claims that the rich have become rich by practicing the rules set by the government and therefore will follow the government strictly. In this process the rich lose their own moral beliefs (). By declaring he will not make comparisons, he inadvertently expresses the very comparison he claims he does not want to generate. Thoreau asserts the thoughts that he wants the readers to pay attention to: people will continue to follow the institution they succeed at and losing their virtues along the way. This idea is the bases for his argument in which he is able to condemn the rich for not following their morals. Praeterito allows Thoreau to emphasize that people need to make a government that has morals. The audience notices that praeterito is used effectively since it enhances the meaning
Thoreau also uses the rhetoric device of Hypophora multiple times in this essay. One such instance is when he asks “Shall we not have the advantage of his wisdom and honesty, nevertheless?” (). He replies with that there are no more respectable men in this country (). This is an example of Hypophora since Thoreau answers his own question. Furthermore, Thoreau uses this question as a springboard to further his own claims and arguments regarding the people’s duties. Thoreau claims that the people should form their own thoughts about issues, and stand up against perceived wrongs. Thoreau uses Hypophora to point out the problems he has with the people in the American government. With this rhetorical device, Thoreau offers a solution to the problem. In this case, he requests people to start forming their own thoughts and search for the wrongs in society.