have arisen as a means to try to create change. Peaceful protest is not a new concept‚ even in America. Henry David Thoreau‚ a Transcendentalist writer in the 19th century‚ refused to pay taxes because he did not support the Mexican War. In Civil Disobedience‚ Thoreau claims that so many men today blindly follow the government’s wishes and that “in most cases there is no free exercise whatever of the judgment or of the moral sense.” Peaceful protest is a way for men to “be men first‚ and subjects
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Thoreau -- Civil Disobedience Historians‚ philosophers‚ and authors have spent decades contemplating the relation between government and citizens. Though the question sparks many thought s‚ it is rarely met with sufficient answers. However‚ a theorist known as Henry Thoreau has offered many works that have shown deep insight on viewing man as an individual instead of a subject‚ through analyzing the ways citizens should live out their lives. Thoreau ‘s most famous work Civil Disobedience expresses
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and he has abdicated government here‚ by declaring us out of his protection and waging war against us. The question is if gaining our independence is a good idea or not? I believe we should allow him to cut all connections with us because that way we can enforce our own laws and grow as a fair country where everyone votes and are all equal. Gaining our independence will take time which we will make it without Britain. If the king of Britain wants to abdicate us from his government I
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Since the signing of the Declaration of Independence‚ the United States has held countless aspirations‚ including the idea that America needs to be the perfect example of what a democratic state should be. With that goal in mind‚ the United States has evolved into the most powerful state in the world‚ surpassing nations in every demographic at one time or another. America’s values are so influential‚ a term known as “American Exceptionalism” has sprung up to describe the nation’s power and strength
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As the word civil is included in "civil disobedience" these things are professed in a calm and nonviolent way. Henry David Thoreau once said "If a plant cannot live according to nature‚ it dies; and so a man." This quote is related to how the government is ran. If the conditions aren’t right and equal‚ the man will suffer. In 1849‚ Thoreau wrote an essay called "Civil Disobedience." Henry disagreed with slavery and fought to end it. In his
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David Henry Thoreau‚ through his writings‚ influenced the Martin Luther King‚ Jr. in his quest for equal rights. Not only is this evidenced in King’s actions‚ but King partially attributes his methods to the inspiration of Thoreau. In “Civil Disobedience‚” Thoreau promotes resisting unjust government actions. Although not opposed to violent solutions‚ Thoreau encourages less aggressive measures. Specifically‚ Thoreau gave the example of refusing to pay certain taxes. Following this idea‚ King writes
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well known Irish essayist‚ and novelist‚ “Disobedience‚ in the eyes of anyone who has read history‚ is man’s original virtue. It is through disobedience that progress has been made‚ through disobedience‚ and through rebellion”. Although one may disagree with such an opinion‚ keeping in mind that society is taught at a very young age of what is wrong and what is right‚ sometimes obedience and disobedience fall under the same category. Like obedience‚ disobedience can also be seen as a virtue. The human
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violence and harsher rules from their imperialist rulers. This lead Gandhi to perform an act of civil disobedience by marching thousands of miles‚ with an equal amount of followers‚ to turn salt water into pure salt. Ignoring the tax and going around it resulted in Gandhi being arrested‚ but even then his followers continued to march to the ocean‚ continuing to follow Gandhi’s teachings of civil disobedience. Because of this‚ British imperialists eventually lifted the tax on salt. The British could not
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Civil Disobedience is the act of opposing the law for one’s own beliefs. It might cause a storm of arguments‚ but it is far from wrong. People should not be forced to do things that they think are wrong. And some things helped change America for the better. The right being able to protest against the law is not a idea that is harming society for the worse. America drafting was something that Muhammad Ali stood against for. Instead of running away from the law he stood strong and said "Just take
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citizens have the right to take actions. Peaceful resistance to law positively impacts all societies in the world‚ no matter the era. Rewinding almost 150 years‚ we turn towards a man who believes that civil disobedience is actually a necessity in society. Henry David Thoreau defended civil disobedience by stating it is a citizen’s responsibility to act against a corrupt government. In his time‚ he protested vehemently against a greedy government who was seeking dominance. His refusal to pay a poll
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