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On The Duty Of Civil Disobediance (2007)

by Henry David Thoreau(Favorite Author)

3.96 of 5 Votes: 4

ISBN

1604244291 (ISBN13: 9781604244298)

languge

English

genre

History & Biography

publisher

Book Jungle

review 1: Some fairly specious reasoning in here. It is lovely that Thoreau has become a symbol of all that is right with the world, but I am reviewing the text, not him. The first part of the text is argument, the middle is an account of his night in jail, and the final third is commentary related to his first argument.The first argument, which he admits in the third part of the text, does not distinguish between material and formal cooperation in evil. "It is for no particular item in the tax-bill that I refuse to pay it. I simply wish to refuse allegiance to the State, to withdraw and stand aloof from it effectually. I do not care to trace the course of my dollar, if I could, till it buys a man, or a musket to shoot one with,—the dollar is innocent,—but I am concerned to trac... moree the effects of my allegiance. In fact, I quietly declare war with the State, after my fashion, though I will still make what use and get what, advantage of her I can, as is usual in such cases."This admission seems to undercut everything that he has said before this point. He drops his claim that "they abet injustice" who pay taxes (and thereby mediately materially cooperate) to Massachusetts. What is left of his argument, if he has, in a couple of casual lines, dropped his thesis? "I simply wish to refuse allegiance to the State...though I will still make use and get what advantage of her I can..."What is left is that he believes that he can change public opinion by suffering at the hands of the state a lesser evil than the evils he decries it commits against others by keeping slavery legal. (What's the opposite of a fortiori?) But waiting for public opinion to change was precisely what he argued against in his refusal to mediately materially cooperate with the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. So that's gone, too. What is left of this argument? I can find nothing.Please don't misunderstand me: Thoreau's error was an intellectual rather than moral one. Who--least of all I, a New Englander--can help but sympathize with the man who simply wanted to be left alone by an evil world?
review 2: thoreau spent one night in jail in 1846 for refusing to pay his poll tax. he did this in protests of slavery and the mexican war. thoreau was born in concord massachusetts, at a time when slavery was beginning to be less acceptable. he was a naturalist who believed in following your conscience. when he was alive he was seen as peculiar (odd that having kind intentions should be strange). i read many of his books when i was in high school, and liked the way he wrote. he had being different seem the most natural thing less

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