SECTION ONE-Thoreau begins Civil Disobedience by saying that he agrees with the

motto, "That government is best which governs least." Indeed, he says, men will someday
be able to have a government that does not govern at all. As it is, government rarely
proves useful or efficient. It is often "abused and perverted" so that it no longer represents
the will of the people. The Meican!American "ar illustrates this phenomenon.
The only times when government has been useful has been when it has stood aside.It
does not #eep the country free, settle the "est, or educate.
Thoreau argues that by answering to the ma$ority, democracies answer the desires of the
strongest group, not the most virtuous or thoughtful. A government founded on this
principle cannot be based on $ustice. "hy can%t there be a government where right and
wrong are not decided by the ma$ority but by conscience.Thoreau writes ""hy has every
man a conscience, then& I thin# we should be men first, and sub$ects afterward." 'e
asserts that it is more important to develop a respect for the right, rather than a respect for
law, for people%s obligations are to do what is right.
Too much respect for law leads people to do many un$ust things, as war illustrates(
)oldiers become only a shadow of their humanity* the government shapes them into
machines. )oldiers have no opportunity to eercise moral sense, reduced to the eistence
comparable to that of a horse or dog. +et these men are often called good citi,ens.
)imilarly, most legislators and politicians do not put moral sense first, and those few who
do are persecuted as enemies.
The -uestion then becomes how to behave toward the American government. Thoreau%s
answer is to avoid associating with it altogether.'owever, Thoreau argues that we have
not only the right, but indeed the duty, to rebel. The enslavement of one sith of the
population and the invasion of Meico represent tremendous in$ustices that we must not
allow to continue.
The people of the .nited )tates must stop slavery and the war with Meico, even if it
costs them their eistence as a people. Mexican-American War ! The Meican!
American "ar /0123!01214 was fought/fight4 over boundary/granica4 disputes/spor4
between the two countries* the Americans believed that it was their "Manifest Destiny" to
epand their territory. During the war, ..). forces invaded/,avladuva so4 Meico and
occupied its capital, eventually gaining the land that would later constitute California,
5evada, .tah, most of Ari,ona and 5ew Meico, and parts of Colorado and "yoming.
666There are thousands of people who oppose slavery and war with Meico and yet do
nothing, waiting for others to ta#e action. It is this passive waiting that Thoreau
condemns.
C7MM85TA9+!Thoreau%s essay is both an abstract wor# of political theory and a
practical and topical wor# addressing the issues of the day. Thoreau is ma#ing several
theoretical claims about the nature of democracy and the relationship between citi,en and
government. :or eample, Thoreau argues that government should be based on
conscience and that citi,ens should cease associating with an un$ust government.'is
essay is also very much an appeal to his fellow Massachusetts residents about the current
issues of the day. 'e discusses slavery and the war with Meico as very real issues in
their lives, and he impels his readers to action. .And Thoreau is deeply concerned with
the in$ustices of his own time.
!Mexican-American War ! The Meican!American "ar /0123!01214 was fought/fight4
over boundary/granica4 disputes/spor4 between the two countries* the Americans believed
that it was their "Manifest Destiny" to epand their territory. During the war, ..). forces
invaded/,avladuva so4 Meico and occupied its capital, eventually gaining the land that
would later constitute California, 5evada, .tah, most of Ari,ona and 5ew Meico, and
parts of Colorado and "yoming. 666There are thousands of people who oppose slavery
and war with Meico and yet do nothing, waiting for others to ta#e action. It is this
passive waiting that Thoreau condemns.
7ne of the most important themes throughout Thoreau%s wor# is the notion of
individualism. :urthermore, he argues that if an individual supports the government in
any way,then that person is complicit in in$ustices forwarded by the government.This lays
an etremely heavy responsibility on the individual( to compromise, negotiate, or
passively accept is to betray one%s integrity and commit a crime.;ut, consider how
unstable a community would be if it followed this viewpoint( Can a society function if
everybody is a "man first and a sub$ect afterwards"& Thoreau #new that not everybody
was going to follow his individualistic values* he argued that his duty was to set a
standard for himself. This attitude can be understood as either imprudent or brave.
SECTION TWO-Thoreau turns to how citi,ens should respond to their government%s
in$ustices. 'e says that he does not believe that voting is the proper solution.5owadays,
there are no people who vote independently of what their political parties tell them to do.
8veryone agrees that un$ust laws eist. The -uestion is whether we should be content to
obey them, whether we should try to change them but obey until they%re changed, or
whether we should disobey them at once. Most people in a democracy believe that the
second course is best. They believe that if they resist, the revolution would be worse than
the in$ustice.
Thoreau then returns to the metaphor of the government!as!machine. 'e says that if an
in$ustice is part of the "necessary friction" of the "machine of government," then it should
be left alone.'owever, if the government re-uires one to be an agent of in$ustice toward
another, then Thoreau says one must brea# the law.
'e says that he himself would never want to thin# himself dependent on the )tate%s
protection. 'owever, he ac#nowledges that if he refuses to pay taes it will mean he will
lose his property and that the state will harass his family. This is "hard," he admits( It is
hard to live honestly and yet outwardly comfortably at the same time.
C7MM85TA9+!Thoreau ma#es an important philosophical point here about the ways in
which people are /and are not4 responsible for harm/stetata4 that befalls/happen to4
others.meaning for Thoreau( ;eing a member of an un$ust institution, even being a citi,en
of an un$ust nation, ma#es a person a participant in in$ustice. 8ven paying taes to an evil
government is enough to leave a person morally tarnished/obele,an4. :or this reason,
Thoreau argues that people have a duty to disassociate from the government and to not
support it either financially or as persons.Morality does not re-uire that a person wor# to
bring about a "better" world. 9ather, a person must simply not ma#e the world any worse.
Thoreau%s distinction here is lin#ed to his individualism( 'e argues that each person
should live for himself and ta#e advantage of his short time on earth to follow his own
interests and goals.
It is also worth considering how Thoreau%s ideas relate to democracy.Democracy is
ultimately about compromise* people accept the decision of the ma$ority/mno,instvo4
because they #now that others will accept their decisions when they are in the ma$ority.
Thoreau does not fully disobey/otfrli,ne i,vrsuva4 democracy%s rules either( 'e accepts
that by brea#ing one law /e.g., the law to pay taes4 he will be punished under another
/criminal4 law, and he does not say that people should try to avoid the conse-uences of
their disobedience!they should not go into hiding * they should not resist arrest.
SECTION THREE-Thoreau now turns to his personal eperiences with civil
disobedience. 'e says that he hasn%t paid a poll ta for si years and that he spent a night
in $ail once because of this. 'is eperience in $ail did not hurt his spirit.and staying in $ail
that night was li#e traveling in another country. After the first night, however, somebody
interfered and paid his ta, and so he was released from prison the net day.
Thoreau says that he doesn%t want conflicts with any other person or country. 9ather, he
wants to follow the law, and he loo#s for reasons to follow it. 'e -uotes a verse( ""e
must affect <i.e., "treat"= our country as our parents.
'e spea#s of Daniel Webster, saying that this politician fails to ma#e fundamental
reforms of government. 'owever, compared with other politicians and reformers,
"ebster is the only sensible one. 'e is not a leader but a follower, and his actions are
defensive, not aggressive. 'e supports slavery because it was in the original compact of
the ..). Thus, he doesn%t have wisdom but only prudence/vnimatelnost4. Daniel Webster
! Daniel "ebster /0>?@!01A@4 was a well!#nown American orator, lawyer and politician.
As a ..). )enator, he was an elo-uent defender of a strong national government. 'e
opposed the war with Meico and was instrumental in passing the Compromise of 01AB
on slavery, for which many 5ortherners denounced him. 'e also served as )ecretary of
)tate for Cresidents "illiam 'enry 'arrison, Dohn Tyler and Millard :illmore.
The movement toward democracy constitutes progress toward true respect for the
individual. 'owever, democracy is not the last step that can be made. 'e says that he
dreams of a )tate that respects the individual, a )tate that would not mind if a few
individuals even chose to live independent
C7MM85TA9+!Thoreau now turns to his personal eperiences with civil disobedience.
'e says that he hasn%t paid a poll ta for si years and that he spent a night in $ail once
because of this. 'is eperience in $ail did not hurt his spirit.and staying in $ail that night
was li#e traveling in another country. After the first night, however, somebody interfered
and paid his ta, and so he was released from prison the net day.
'e spea#s of Daniel Webster, saying that this politician fails to ma#e fundamental
reforms of government. 'owever, compared with other politicians and reformers,
"ebster is the only sensible one. 'e is not a leader but a follower, and his actions are
defensive, not aggressive. 'e supports slavery because it was in the original compact of
the ..). Thus, he doesn%t have wisdom but only prudence/vnimatelnost4. Daniel Webster
! Daniel "ebster /0>?@!01A@4 was a well!#nown American orator, lawyer and politician.
As a ..). )enator, he was an elo-uent defender of a strong national government. 'e
opposed the war with Meico and was instrumental in passing the Compromise of 01AB
on slavery, for which many 5ortherners denounced him. 'e also served as )ecretary of
)tate for Cresidents "illiam 'enry 'arrison, Dohn Tyler and Millard :illmore.
Thoreau also provides an important message about the value of non!conformity. 5ot only
is he concerned about the in$ustices practiced by the American government* he is also
concerned about the government%s intolerance toward non!conformity and dissent.'e also
presents his idea for a utopian world in which the government would allow people to
choose to live independently of the government itself.
)ome thin#ers arguing that people are born into connections with others that they cannot
control or change. These thin#ers argue that people cannot simply disassociate /ne mo,at
da se ot#a,at4with their world or even their government* they have obligations not only to
their own thoughts and feelings but also to the thoughts and feelings of others and to the
needs of those around them.
Thoreau, however, contends that, regardless of other connections, a person is ultimately
responsible to himself alone and can and should see himself as independent of his society
and government.