Thoreau's Stance on Abolition. Thoreau says in Walden, "It is never too late to give up your prejudices." Athough he is advocating that man in society should relinquish his prejudices through revelation from nature, it can also be interpreted as advocating anti-slavery beliefs.
To truly bring about abolition, Thoreau argues, one must “assert his own freedom” and act against slavery in a context in which it isn’t convenient to do so or in which the majority of people are not yet indifferent to slavery.
Henry David Thoreau Thoreau in 1856 Born David Henry Thoreau (1817-07-12) July 12, 1817 Concord, Massachusetts, U.S. Died May 6, 1862 (1862-05-06) (aged 44) Concord, Massachusetts, U.S. Alma mater Harvard College Era 19th-century philosophy Region Western philosophy School Transcendentalism Main interests Ethics poetry religion politics biology philosophy history …
writings. The significance of John Brown for Henry Thoreau was that this man of action, who dared to strike a blow against slavery, was the very embodiment of many of his own principles. Nick Aaron Ford, in a 1946 article in The New England Quar terly, argued that Thoreau was an abolitionist, explaining that the
One must try to change the laws but obey them until they're changed. One must obey them as long as it is politically expedient.
In Civil Disobedience, Thoreau's basic premise is that a higher law than civil law demands the obedience of the individual. Human law and government are subordinate. In cases where the two are at odds with one another, the individual must follow his conscience and, if necessary, disregard human law.
Thoreau was an ardent and outspoken abolitionist, serving as a conductor on the underground railroad to help escaped slaves make their way to Canada. He wrote strongly-worded attacks on the Fugitive Slave Law ("Slavery in Massachusetts") and on the execution of John Brown.
11. On what grounds does Thoreau believe the majority will make its decision? On the grounds of expediency, on what will be most useful to the greatest number of people.
Thoreau made many contributions to transcendentalism, including writing many essays and poems for the transcendentalist literary journal The Dial and Walden; or, Life in the Woods, a book that describes his experiences living in a small cabin on Walden Pond for two years where Thoreau wanted to demonstrate that a man ...Jan 12, 2022
When John Brown, a radical abolitionist, was sentenced to death for treason, Thoreau bravely stood up for Brown's mission and honor, calling him “the bravest and humanest man in all the country.” Several of Thoreau's works focused on the inhumanity of slavery, including his 1854 essay, “Slavery in Massachusetts.” At ...
American essayist, poet, and practical philosopher Henry David Thoreau is renowned for having lived the doctrines of Transcendentalism as recorded in his masterwork, Walden (1854). He was also an advocate of civil liberties, as evidenced in the essay “Civil Disobedience” (1849).
Thoreau undermines Webster’s logic, urging him to look at the issue of slavery from a higher vantage point, separate from the constitution, and do what is ethical according to God and not the government. Again, Thoreau’s claim is that justice and God’s will must trump any government’s laws.
Civil Disobedience. Summary. Analysis. Thoreau begins his essay by admitting that he believes that the best governments are the ones that “govern least.”. He follows up by arguing that, unfortunately, most governments are “inexpedient,” and that in many cases a standing government is just as objectionable as a standing army because it is “equally ...
Active Themes. Thoreau maintains that the American government has lost much of its integrity, which has made it weak enough “for a single man [to] bend it to his will.”. He compares the government to a wooden gun, saying that it is so fragile that if the people ever used it in “earnest,” it would split.
Thoreau states that the American government, in direct violation of the American people ’s will, is not only waging an unjust war but has also failed to achieve the things it boasts of, such as keeping the country free and settling the west.
Thoreau states that voting in such a system is worthless, and that men who cast their votes for candidates provided by this system are spineless. This leads him to wonder about the character of “the American,” whom he believes has dwindled into an “Odd Fellow,” that lacks “intellect” and “self-reliance.”.
Thoreau begins his conclusion by reminding his audience that the “authority of [their] government is still an impure one,” because a just government must have the “consent of the governed” in order to rule. He argues that any transition to a democracy must mean “a true respect for the individual.”.
Active Themes. Thoreau provides examples of his own acts of civil disobedience. First, he recounts how he refused to pay a tax to the church, though someone else eventually paid on his behalf. Then he shares that he also did not pay a poll tax for six years, for which he was eventually imprisoned.
Thoreau was fervently against slavery and actively supported the abolitionist movement. He participated as a conductor in the Underground Railroad, delivered lectures that attacked the Fugitive Slave Law, and in opposition to the popular opinion of the time, supported radical abolitionist militia leader John Brown and his party. Two weeks after the ill-fated raid on Harpers Ferry and in the weeks leading up to Brown's execution, Thoreau delivered a speech to the citizens of Concord, Massachusetts, in which he compared the American government to Pontius Pilate and likened Brown's execution to the crucifixion of Jesus Christ :
In 1851, Thoreau became increasingly fascinated with natural history and narratives of travel and expedition. He read avidly on botany and often wrote observations on this topic into his journal. He admired William Bartram and Charles Darwin 's Voyage of the Beagle. He kept detailed observations on Concord's nature lore, recording everything from how the fruit ripened over time to the fluctuating depths of Walden Pond and the days certain birds migrated. The point of this task was to "anticipate" the seasons of nature, in his word.
His expectations were high because he hoped to find genuine, primeval America.
The traditional professions open to college graduates—law, the church, business, medicine —did not interest Thoreau, so in 1835 he took a leave of absence from Harvard, during which he taught at a school in Canton, Massachusetts. After he graduated in 1837, he joined the faculty of the Concord public school, but he resigned after a few weeks rather than administer corporal punishment. He and his brother John then opened the Concord Academy, a grammar school in Concord, in 1838. They introduced several progressive concepts, including nature walks and visits to local shops and businesses. The school closed when John became fatally ill from tetanus in 1842 after cutting himself while shaving. He died in Henry's arms.
Thoreau's books, articles, essays, journals, and poetry amount to more than 20 volumes. Among his lasting contributions are his writings on natural history and philosophy, in which he anticipated the methods and findings of ecology and environmental history, two sources of modern-day environmentalism.
Henry David Thoreau was born David Henry Thoreau in Concord, Massachusetts, into the "modest New England family" of John Thoreau, a pencil maker, and Cynthia Dunbar. His paternal grandfather had been born on the UK crown dependency island of Jersey. His maternal grandfather, Asa Dunbar, led Harvard's 1766 student " Butter Rebellion ", the first recorded student protest in the American colonies. David Henry was named after his recently deceased paternal uncle, David Thoreau. He began to call himself Henry David after he finished college; he never petitioned to make a legal name change. He had two older siblings, Helen and John Jr., and a younger sister, Sophia Thoreau. None of the children married. Helen (1812–1849) died at age 36 years, from tuberculosis. John Jr. (1815–1842) died at age 27, of tetanus. Henry David (1817–1862) died at age 44, of tuberculosis. Sophia (1819–1876) survived him by 14 years, dying at age 57 years, of tuberculosis.
Although his writings would receive widespread acclaim, Thoreau's ideas were not universally applauded. Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson judged Thoreau's endorsement of living alone and apart from modern society in natural simplicity to be a mark of "unmanly" effeminacy and "womanish solitude", while deeming him a self-indulgent "skulker".
Obstacles to slavery reform, Henry David Thoreau contends, are not only the powerful slaveholders in the South but the businessmen in Massachusetts, more interested in earning a living than in preserving their humanity. Thoreau's real "quarrel" is with these New England neighbors.
Thoreau has already explained why the abolition of slavery should be an immediate goal. Now he tackles the harder question of how to achieve it. What should American citizens or Massachusetts residents do if they're convinced by his argument in Section 1?
The ThemeTracker below shows where, and to what degree, the theme of Civil Disobedience appears in each chapter of Civil Disobedience. Click or tap on any chapter to read its Summary & Analysis.
Below you will find the important quotes in Civil Disobedience related to the theme of Civil Disobedience .