Henry David Thoreau “On the Duty of Civil Disobedience”

Conscience Above the State

By Eric F. Rangel

“Civil Disobedience” by Henry David Thoreau was written after spending a night in jail. What led to his brief imprisonment? Failure to pay a poll tax. In order to grasp the motivation behind this action, one must understand Thoreau. Thoreau was an avid abolitionist and was against the Mexican-American War of 1846. He was also someone who believed that one's morals and conscience should overpower government and its unjust laws. Given all this, he couldn’t find it in himself to pay a poll tax because paying it would mean supporting a government that still supported slavery and the Mexican-American War, two matters to which he was vehemently opposed. However, the centerpiece of his essay is the claim that one’s conscience should override obedience to a government infested with unjust laws, and that citizens have a moral duty to oppose such a government. 

Thoreau begins his essay by taking a stab at the role of the government: “That government is best which governs least," followed by “not at once no government, but at once a better government." The reader needs to cement into mind that Thoreau is not entirely opposed to government but rather advocates for a better one. However, Thoreau believes that power and responsibility shouldn’t rest solely in the hands of a few legislators and the public at large, but rather that moral principles are more paramount than the decisions of key players and the opinions of the majority, which is proven by his statement, “the only obligation which I have a right to assume is to do at any time what I think is right."

Aside from advocating for a better government, Thoreau condemns those who say they oppose slavery but continue to support the government that guards the practice. His statement, “it is not desirable to cultivate a respect for the law, so much as for the right,” illustrates his belief that obedience compromises morals when laws violate basic human rights. Although Massachusetts presented itself as a free state, it was supporting a war effort that would essentially support slavery and the Fugitive Slave Act. Thus, for Thoreau, refusing to pay a tax was simply an act of conscience rather than rebellion. 

While some of the issues that Thoreau was opposing and fighting against might seem a thing of the past, although we’re currently seeing a hint of going back in time, many of his arguments still resonate because individuals and communities still face situations in which our laws and public policy efforts conflict with our own morality. Civil disobedience, that is, peaceful disobedience, has played a central role in various movements, such as the Civil Rights Movement, LGBTQ+ rights advocacy, and social justice efforts, to name a few. An example is Martin Luther King Jr who drew inspiration from Thoreau’s philosophy when advocating for nonviolent resistance against segregation ("Non-Violence"). However, a debate remains on what constitutes appropriate civil disobedience. Regardless, Thoreau reminds people that they should never surrender their conscience to the government. Lastly, he reminds readers that democracy isn’t just dependent on laws and elections but also on our willingness to challenge the government when it fails to uphold its moral responsibilities. 

Sources

"Non-Violence." American Experience, PBS, www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/mlk-non-violence/. 

Thoreau, Henry David. On the Duty of Civil Disobedience. Project Gutenberg, www.gutenberg.org/files/71/71-h/71-h.htm.