Thoreau's Impact On Civil Disobedience

The government's flawed state can be corrected by the action of an individual. Henry David Thoreau’s Civil Disobedience heavily reinforces this idea by presenting novel concepts regarding the role, responsibilities, and options of individuals, as they pertain to government, throughout the course of the text. The text was written in 1894 during the time of the Mexican American war when the US government, and the people it represented, found itself in a turbulent, uncertain state. Thoreau’s mission was to inform other transcendentalists and civilians in the United States about the actions they could and should have taken against government when unacceptable forms of rule arose. Although many Americans believed achieving reform was impossible through the actions of individuals, Thoreau’s belief was that independent and just strides could be enough to make considerable change; this becomes clear when Thoreau says, “It is not as important that many should be as good as you, as that may be some absolute goodness, for that will leaven the lump” (Thoreau 4). This excerpt demonstrates Thoreau’s belief that the actions of one person can incentivize entire groups of people to take action and even correct a social institution as large as a national government. The other literary leader who expressed contempt for poor and unjust governance is Martin Luther King Jr. His

Thoreau’s ideal way to impact the government is what King followed through with in his attempt to change the social injustice at hand. Unfortunately, the great steps these leader have left behind have no face to represent and continue on with the fight in the state of our modern day society. Social injustice is alive and well within our community and Thoreau and King would most likely try to change its content in order to continue with their mission to make a society equal and suitable for