He impugns us to do what is morally right, and to not be afraid to take a stand against injustice. Henry David Thoreau’s position on civil disobedience is neither morally irresponsible nor politically reprehensible. Civil disobedience is technically illegal, and is punishable, but who is ultimately responsible for determining what is right or wrong? Van Dusen strongly believes that defiance of laws go against the democratic nature of our government: “Bit civil disobedience, whatever the ethical rationalization, is still an assault on our
Hence, it is wrong to say that one should obey just laws and disobey unjust laws. It is difficult to identify just and unjust laws. Many people have tried to define them. For example, Martin Luther King said that a law is unjust if it is inflicted on a minority. While as per Thoreau, policies of the State should never be put above the individual's needs.
The quote “’we shall not report our find to the City Council. We shall not report it to any men.’” demonstrates ethics. This quote demonstrates ethics because Equality knows the right thing to do would be to report his find to the council, but because of his curiosity and interest in the tunnel he refuses to tell or let his friend tell the council of the tunnel. Ethics is one of the main points of Ayn Rand’s theory of objectivism and she proves how Equality demonstrates it through his disobeying of the city council. “I wished to know the meaning of things, am I the meaning” illustrates objectivism through epistemology.
It does not settle the west. It does not educate.” Thoreau also uses powerful imagery in order to persuade his readers towards his ideals. He believed that one must be conscious of the laws they choose to obey and disobey, whether or not they are in the minority. The people should not be tricked into believing that neither the government nor the majority will know what is right and what is wrong. Instead, Thoreau remarks that it is up to every man to decide for himself what is right based on his moral standards and ethics.
Who Do You Live For? Living through the motto “That government is best which governs least"; Henry Thoreau writes his three part essay “Civil Disobedience” to explain to readers his idea on the governmental issues he faced in his time (Thoreau 1.1). Criticizing the usefulness of the government to society Thoreau feels that instead of following rules set by the government men as a whole should stand up for what they believe is right. Written during the Mexican War, Thoreau states that man should base the rules of the government off what he feels is right rather than follow the laws set by the majority. Living under the impression that a wise minority will always overthrow the majority.
It is clear that people do not abide by the laws regarding to alcohol consumption and that shows their lack of respect for this law so what’s stopping people from loosing respect for other laws and in consequence not following them? When laws are put in place but they are difficult or near impossible to enforce it causes a loss of respect by the members of society. Albert Einstein is correct in saying that “nothing is more destructive of respect for the government and the law of the land than passing laws which cannot be enforced”. In conclusion there is no point in making a law which cannot be
Sophocles and Thoreau Civil Disobedience Since the very conception of the idea of an organized government, the response by some members of the society being governed has naturally been to oppose the laws or decisions made by their leaders. Most commonly seen as an active form of nonviolent resistance, such movements are now known as acts of civil disobedience and have been prominently displayed in various cultures and as a function have appeared in numerous written texts as well. With many famous historical figures being associated with the movement of civil disobedience such as Henry David Thoreau and Mahatma K. Gandhi, it sometimes comes as a surprise to learn of lesser known figures, such as the famous Greek dramatist Sophocles, whose works have also proven to be essential texts on this movement. Two specific texts of significant importance are Thoreau’s “Resistance to Civil Government” also widely known as “Civil Disobedience,” and Sophocles’ play “Antigone.” With “Antigone” existing as one of the earliest depictions of civil disobedience, and Thoreau’s text serving as one of the most prominent publications on the movement in today’s age, the similarities in their underlying message prove that the ideals of civil disobedience have remained seemingly unchanged since the birth of the movement. This common message, not only between the two works in discussion but in many others, is that of the duty of the people themselves to disobey unjust laws and demands of the government in question.
Civil Disobedience is an essay by American transcendentalist Henry David Thoreau that was first published in 1849. He opens his piece with the saying “That government is best which governs least,” and he speaks in favor of government that does not interfere with men's lives. Thoreau asserts that because governments are typically more harmful than helpful, they therefore cannot be justified. He argues that people should not allow the government to weaken or override their consciences. He was mainly driven by his hatred with slavery and the Mexican-American War.
Antigone knows that by the law of the gods leaving a body uncovered is morally unjust. Martin Luther King addresses this very issue in his “Letter from Birmingham Jail.” Although it was written 2,000 years later, it speaks to a similar topic, which civil disobedience. “An unjust law is a code that is out of harmony with the moral law” (King 3). Antigone’s actions follow along with King’s four steps towards civil disobedience although there are differences because of the eras. Antigone responds to Creon’s edict with civil disobedience as King
Oddly enough, with this theory, it is prohibited to tell lies or commit suicide because that is morally wrong within itself and does not support the universal good of a rational decision, but if people acted in line with their duty to the universal law of their society, the results were of no consequence (Butts & Rich, 2008, Chapter 1). Kant stated that a person should act without emotion and with a complete sense of duty to serve the morally universal law of society and that the intention is of more importance than the result – consequences of the actions do not matter (Jasper, 1962). The theory of deontology follows this thought by setting demands that humans act at all times as though their actions would be universally accepted into an overall rule for society. He believed that duty and law are always one unit and cannot be separated and that with this duty to law, we shape our world. My criticism of this theory is that thought processes without emotions make our decisions too concrete.