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Essay / Research Paper Abstract
A 4 page essay that defends Thoreau’s position in his essay “Civil Disobedience.” Thoreau argued against adhering to the dictates of any society or obeying any law simply because it is a law. Rather than blindly accepting the authority of the state, Thoreau felt that people were obligated to obey a higher law, one that was dictated by their own conscience and based on principles of natural justice. An examination of Thoreau’s argument shows it is logical, persuasive and draws upon the principles of freedom and justice on which the United States was founded. Bibliography lists 2 sources.
Page Count:
4 pages (~225 words per page)
File: D0_khthcdde.rtf
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Unformatted sample text from the term paper:
simply because it is a law. Rather than blindly accepting the authority of the state, Thoreau felt that people were obligated to obey a higher law, one that was dictated
by their own conscience and based on principles of natural justice. An examination of Thoreaus argument shows it is logical, persuasive and draws upon the principles of freedom and justice
on which the United States was founded. (The student researching this topic should note how this sentence conveys the writers intention to base support of Thoreau on an appeal based
on logos.) Peter Suber of Earlham College in Richmond, Indiana defines "civil disobedience" as "a from of protest in which protestors deliberately violate a law" (Suber, 1999). This usually consists
of violating the law to which they object, such as segregation laws. Thoreaus argument, in brief, is that a democratic government is not always right or just because it derives
its authority from the opinions of the majority and the majority of the people can be wrong. Therefore, if the majority of the people-or the strongest political group-support an unjust
cause, a citizen who blindly supports the government also tacitly supports injustice. While Thoreau acknowledges that an individual cannot eliminate all that is wrong in this world, he asserts that
it is immoral to allow oneself to be associated with a gross injustice. In his essay, Thoreau refers particularly to the Mexican War, which many Americans, such a Ralph Waldo
Emerson and Frederick Douglass, considered to be illegal, as well as to the moral injustice of slavery. In the latter part of the essay recounts his own experience with civil
disobedience and how he refused to pay his taxes and spent a night in jail in order to call attention to these issues and to be true to his own
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