"Thoreau was a great writer, philosopher, poet, and withal a most practical man, that is, he taught nothing he was not prepared to practise in himself. ... He went to jail for the sake of his principles and suffering humanity. His essay has, therefore, been sanctified by suffering. Moreover, it is written for all time. Its incisive logic is unanswerable." - Mohandas Gandhi

"... when, in the mid-1950's, the United States Information Service included as a standard book in all their libraries around the world a textbook ... which reprinted Thoreau's 'Civil Disobedience,' the late Senator Joseph McCarthysucceeded in having that book removed from the shelves — specifically because of the Thoreau essay." - Walter Harding, in The Variorum Civil Disobedience

"I became convinced that noncooperation with evil is as much a moral obligation as is cooperation with good. No other person has been more eloquent and passionate in getting this idea across than Henry David Thoreau. As a result of his writings and personal witness, we are the heirs of a legacy of creative protest." - Martin Luther King, Jr, Autobiography

Homework: Finish Civil Disobedience and write one inferential and one evaluative question and submit both of them to turnitin.com

1. "I cast my vote, perchance, as I think right; ... I am willing to leave it to the majority. Its obligation, therefore, never exceeds that of expediency. Even voting for the right is doing nothing for it. It is only expressing to men feebly your desire that it should prevail." (5). Thoreau brings forth a very staunch insight in this passage; that Americans are all essentially sheep, following the majority for the sake of convenience alone. Furthermore, he argues that stating your claim is not analogous to advocating for it. Is Thoreau's assertion too harsh, or does it seem reasonable? Is this complacency to letting others handle the power still prevalent in our society today? Do you see yourself as a passive bystander, or as someone that is a proponent of their beliefs?

2. Henry David Thoreau discusses the importance, or lack thereof, of the role of Presidency of the United States. He defines the President as a man who was elected by force, and does not really care for his job. As Thoreau puts it, he "despairs" his country. Thoreau continues, saying "His vote is of no more worth than that of any unprincipled foreigner or hireling native, who may have been bought. Oh for a man who is a man, and, as my neighbor says, has a bone in his back which you cannot pass your hand through!" (Thoreau 6). Thoreau's interpretation of "men" is later referred to as well. He asks the question "How many men are there to a square thousand miles in this country? Hardly one" (Thoreau 6). What does Thoreau mean when he uses the term 'men'? Do you think slaves are considered 'men' to Throeau, and if they are, what makes them a 'man'? Explain.


3. "I know this well that if one thousand, if one hundred, if ten men whom I could name,-if ten honest men only- aye if one HONEST man, in this state of Massachusetts, ceasing to own slaves, were actually to withdraw from this copartnership, and be locked up in county jail therefor, it would be the abolition of slavery in America." (Thoreau 9) 

How does the syntax of the above statement convey Thoreau's desire to abolish slavery? How does one get the impression he is almost begging these "honest men" to turn themselves in and thus end slavery? Will Thoreau's position on this matter influence his following essays?