Name: On the Duty of Civil Disobedience
Author: Henry David Thoreau
ISBN: 9780199513536

On the Duty of Civil Disobedience

Henry David Thoreau

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Author Description

This is the text of an inaugural lecture delivered by Daniel Howe at the University of Oxford in May 1990, in which he argues that Thoreau's essay of 1849 commending the duty of civil disobedience is one of the most widely read American literary texts, invoked by Gandhi, Tolstoy, Martin Luther King and other protest leaders. The title "Civil Disobedience" is the creation of posthumous editors - Thoreau, who wrote the essay after spending a night in jail for non-payment of the poll tax in July 1846 as a protest against slavery and the Mexican War, called it "Resistance to Civil Government". Drawing upon a mixture of liberal, romantic, and Christian sources, he argues that 1) there is a duty to disobey immoral commands; 2) there is a right to break the laws of immoral governments; 3) social progress depends on the moral leadership of a courageous minority. He does not argue that civil resistants should accept legal punishment, nor does he repudiate violence. The text should interest students and scholars of American history and literature, and the history of civil disobedience.

Menrva's Summary

THE THESIS

This work investigates the moral obligation of the individual to resist government actions that violate personal conscience and ethical standards. Henry David Thoreau, an American transcendentalist and philosopher, draws upon his personal experience of imprisonment for tax resistance to construct a framework for civil disobedience. He argues that the individual's allegiance to moral law supersedes their obligation to state law, particularly when the state supports systemic injustices such as slavery and aggressive warfare.

THE SCOPE MAP

What You Will Find

Analysis of the individual's right to dissent against immoral government mandates.
Historical context regarding the Mexican-American War and the institution of slavery.
Philosophical arguments concerning the role of the minority in driving social progress.
Examination of the tension between legal compliance and personal integrity.

THE AUTHORITY PERSPECTIVE

Experts recognize this essay as a foundational text in the history of non-violent resistance and political philosophy. Scholars frequently note the enduring influence of Thoreau's arguments on global leaders, including Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr.

Page Count:
34

Publication Date:
1991-01-01

Publisher:
Oxford Univ Pr

ISBN-10:
0199513538

ISBN-13:
9780199513536

Philosophy

Social Reform

American History

Essays