Civil disobedience is an idea that Henry Thoreau wrote about in the 1800's, which later inspired political activists to lead nonviolent protests that effected change in their government. In my research during this assignment, I read that people influenced by Thoreau's writings included philosopher Martin Buber, Mohandas Ghandi and Martin Luther King Jr. In reading "A Letter from Burmingham Jail," by Dr. King, alongside Thoreau's "Resistance to Civil Government," interesting comparisons and conclusions can be made on the subject of civil disobedience. Both Henry Thoreau and Dr. King used all three persuasive techniques presented at the start of the assignment, however, the way that Martin Luther King Jr. brought emotional life to ethical words is …show more content…
when you suddenly find your tongue twisted and your speech stammering as you seek to explain to your six year old daughter why she can't go to the public amusement park that has just been advertised on television, and see tears welling up in her eyes when she is told that Funtown is closed to colored children, and see ominous clouds of inferiority beginning to form in her little mental sky, and see her beginning to distort her personality by developing an unconscious bitterness toward white people..." Dr. King used his heart-felt words to connect with us personally, putting each reader directly in a situation to feel the injustice he felt, and therefore giving them a chance to better understand. While Thoreau also used emotional persuasion, his writing is mostly based on logic and ethics. About "Resistance to Civil Government," Ghandi is quoted saying "Its incisive logic is unanswerable." I believe this has a lot to do with the time in which Thoreau lived, like many earlier writings, it's so full of logic it drones. That was the sort of reading people were used to. It had to be written in the same style as other political works of the time, so intelligent, active readers would pick it up and pay