 | Price Comparisons: Rental | | Sorry, the textbook you were looking for is not available as Rental, at any of the stores we searched. | Summaries and Customer Reviews are supplied by Amazon.com | Civil Disobedience written by legendary author and philosopher Henry David Thoreau is widely considered to be one of the top essays of all time. This great classic which argues that people should not permit governments to overrule will surely attract a whole new generation of readers. For many, Civil Disobedience is required reading for various courses and curriculums. And for others who simply enjoy reading timeless pieces of classic literature, this text by Henry David Thoreau is highly recommended. Published by Classic Books America and beautifully produced, Civil Disobedience would make an ideal gift and it should be a part of everyone's personal library. |
Average Customer Rating:   When the State is Unjust Civil Disobedience (Original Title: Resistance to Civil Government) by Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862)
This essay was written at a time when slavery was still legal and the United States military had invaded Mexico, serving as a catalyst for Thoreau's dissent against an unjust government. His focus is on the primacy of the individual - and he disagrees that the individual should "serve" the State, especially when the state is unjust.
Some of his memorable quotes include:
-- The mass of men serve the State thus, not as men mainly, but as machines, with their bodies.
-- (The state) is not armed with superior wit or honesty, but with superior physical strength. I was not born to be forced.
-- When I meet a government which says to me, "Your money or your life," why should I be in haste to give it my money?
Ironic as it seems, what was written by Thoreau about the Congress in 1849 is still true today:
"Our legislators have not yet learned the comparative value of free trade and of freed, of union, and of rectitude, to a nation. They have no genius or talent for comparatively humble questions of taxation and finance, commerce and manufactures and agriculture. If we were left solely to the wordy wit of legislators in Congress for our guidance, uncorrected by the seasonable experience and the effectual complaints of the people, America would not long retain her rank among the nations."
Thoreau concludes that "there will never be a free and enlightened State until the State comes to recognize the individual as a higher and independent power, from which all its own power and authority are derived, and treats him accordingly."
This could serve as a primer for the Tea Party Movement!
Dr. B Leland Baker, author of Tea Party Revival, The Conscience of a Conservative Reborn
Tea Party Revival - The Conscience of a Conservative Reborn: The Tea Party Revolt Against Unconstrained Spending and Growth of the Federal Government
A testament to American Individualism This is a thoroughly American view on political theory given the emphasis on the individual coupled with the call for civil disobedience. Definitely not for the faint hearted, go into this with a grasp of the events of the day and a willingness to read the entire essay at least twice to fully appreciate Thoreau's points. excellent Thoreau's writing on "Duty of Civil Disobedience" is brilliant! I have LONG been a fan of the writings of HDT and once journeyed to Walden to see the cabin he lived in but a brief time. This book is so often cited as required reading among those who advocate non-violent protests. While I clearly see why it provides useful information for these purposes, I found myself disappointed by the rustic, "whiskey-rebellion" kind of thinking of anti-taxation given that he also advocates the reader's taking benefits from the state. I'm now conflicted. I find the writings and man a genius, even in those instances in which I disagree with the extent of his anti-taxation position. "It is not so desirable to cultivate a respect for the law, so much as for the right."-Henry David Thoreau In "Civil Disobedience" Thoreau presents political theories in which he dissects democracy and the interaction between citizens and their government.
Understandably, Thoreau was deeply concerned about injustices he witnessed during his life, such as enslavement of one sixth of the population and the invasion of Mexico by the United States.
Thoreau does not oppose the institution of government; he believes that when a government becomes "abused and perverted", it ceases to represent the will of the people. When a government makes decisions that promulgate harm and injustice, it is the duty of its citizens to rebel and break those chains of injustices.
Arguably, the strongest idea Thoreau presents, is the notion of individualism. Thoreau encourages skepticism of the government and rejects blind loyalty to it. Thoreau perceives citizens, who give blind loyalty to their government's decisions without questioning them, as participants in every injustice committed by that government. Whether this point of view is correct or not, it is worth debating, especially in view of the horrific injustices that are extant in today's world and the way the masses so easily accept them without considering the negative impact on others.
Civil Disobedience it wasn't what I expected to receive with the English to Spanish stuff in it |  |
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