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The Difference Between On The Duty Of Civil Disobedience And Letter From Birmingham Jail

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In Henry Thoreau's “On the Duty of Civil Disobedience” and Martin Luther King’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail'' they were both written for a purpose. In the writing of these, there were many similarities in the reason they were written, one is that they both share their opinions on social injustice and civil disobedience. The purpose of writing had some differences from each other. In Thoreau’s speech, he is speaking about expressing his feelings toward what he thinks is an unjust government. This compared to King's speech where he discusses why he feels they should end segregation. Even though these are two different speeches written on different things, they both share similarities in why they were written. In Thoreau’s letter “On the Duty of Civil Disobedience” he writes to justify the actions that he took against the government and to explain the moral reasoning behind his logic. He shows this in the text by, “It is for no particular item in the tax bill that I …show more content…

An example showing this is:
“I have consistently preached that nonviolence demands that the means we use must be as pure as the ends we seek. I have tried to make clear that it is wrong to use immoral means to attain moral ends. But now I must affirm that it is just as wrong, or perhaps even more so, to use moral means to preserve immoral ends.” (para. 46)
The way that this is showing his purpose is because he is saying that trying to get equality a moral and nonviolent way is not going to work even though he wants it to. He is saying that even though it is not good they might have to use non-morals so they could get equality and it is even worse if they don’t get equality using a moral way because what is happening to them is immoral. His second purpose in writing this is to defend the strategies of nonviolent resistance. This is shown when he

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Both men stood for something they did not believe in, cruel and unjust treatment and being asked to pay taxes on something you don't see reason in. Thoreau and Dr. King provide these methods of protest to further support their disagreements with authority. The methods were non-violent and yet the government unjustly imprisoned both activists and further mistreated King and his protesters. As Thoreau declared, “Under a government which imprisons any unjustly, the true place for a just man is also a prison” (Thoreau

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"Civil Disobedience" by Henry David Thoreau and "Letter from Birmingham Jail" by Martin Lither King Jr. Both had the same idea but they were shared in different ways. "Civil Disobedience" was written in the 1830's where as "The Letter From Birmingham Jail" was written nearly 100 years letter. Both pieces of writing showed civil disobedience, and they were shared in the same way, but they both had different views. In both pieces of work the authors have different views of the injustice in the government. Both men, Martin Luther King Jr. and Henry David Thoreau, targeted larger groups rather than smaller ones.

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In 1849, Henry David Thoreau’s essay, Resistance to Civil Government was published. In this essay, Thoreau discussed the importance of using civil disobedience in hopes of creating a more civilized government. Around 100 years later, Martin Luther King Jr. wrote a letter to some clergymen about why blacks should have the same civil rights just like everyone else called, Letter from Birmingham Jail. King was greatly influenced by Thoreau and many of King’s ideas were acquired from principles used in Thoreau’s essay. Compare and contrast how these two men were similar and different when it came to their beliefs of civil disobedience.

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Both Henry David Thoreau and Martin Luther King both spend time in prison for not abiding by the law and practicing civil disobedience, although they are for very different causes. Henry David Thoreau wrote “Resistance to Civil Government” in 1849, he went to jail for not paying a tax that supported the Mexican-American War to expand American territories. He refused to pay this tax because he did not agree to expand American territories because the expansion would lead to more slavery, which he opposed. While Martin Luther King was arrested in 1863 for protesting the treatment of African Americans in Birmingham, Alabama. In jail, Dr. King experienced harsh conditions and more segregation than he did in Birmingham as a free man, so he wrote Letter From Birmingham Jail.”

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Martin Luther King Jr.’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail” and Malcolm X’s “The Ballot or the Bullet” were written to address civil rights. These men use bold, confident tones to prove their points, yet express them differently. In “Letter from Birmingham Jail” Martin Luther King advocates for peace and nonviolent action. He states, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere”.

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In my opinion Henry David Thoreau and Martin Luther King Jr. have very similar purposes in their writings. Both author 's are writing to protest unfair laws. But they also have very different audiences. In Civil Disobediance, Thoreau writes how those who break unjust laws should suffer the consequences as a protest to the laws.

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Letter of Birmingham Jail and Civil Disobedience Henry David Thoreau and Martin Luther King Jr. both tried to fight for their rights to go against the authority if there is any social injustice. Thoreau took the duty and responsibility of the people to protest and take action against the laws of the government. Although, King communicates to his people about the laws or the government against the blacks are intolerable and that “Civil Disobedience” should have an instrument of freedom. They both incredibly illustrate their thought that “Civil Disobedience” is a needed thing, and the similarities and differences of these two essays at portrayed through the time, people, speaker, tone, and strategies. Thoreau’s “Civil Disobedience,” was wrote in the U.S. during the transcendentalism time around 1837 to about the 1840’s.

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The two essays "Letter from a Birmingham Jail" by Martin Luther King Jr. and "Resistance to Civil Government" by Henry David Thoreau were authored at distant points in history (1963 and 1848, respectively) to very different audiences. Their core purpose and cultural impact, however, are nearly identical. Both writers founded their essays on a strong logical basis. They form an argument to those who are oppressing them, establishing what is morally right and how it differs from what is approved by those in authority. For example, Thoreau had a poignant metaphor about poll taxation: "If I have unjustly wrested a plank from a drowning man, I must restore it to him though I drown myself".

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He says, “If it is of such a nature that it requires you to be the agent of injustice to another, then, I say, break the law” (Par 13). Thoreau wants justice so much; he believes if you must break a law to get it, you should. From Thoreau’s point of view, he just wants the government to do what is right, he is not asking for forgiveness. King, on the other hand, thinks that people should get what they are owed, and, in this case, it is justice. He states, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere” (Par 6).

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Civil Disobedience Compare and Contrast Henry Thoreau and Martin Luther King both wrote persuasive discussions that oppose many ideals and make a justification of their cause, being both central to their argument. While the similarity is obvious, the two essays, Civil Disobedience by Thoreau and Letter from a Birmingham Jail by Martin Luther King Jr. do have some similarities. King tries persuading white, southern clergymen that segregation is an evil, unfair law that ought to defeat by use of agitation of direct protesting. Thoreau, on the other hand, writes to a broader, non-addressed audience, and focuses more on the state itself. He further accepts it at its current state, in regard to the battle with Mexico and the institution of slavery.

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By analyzing both of these writings it’s almost obvious that Martin Luther King was influenced by Thoreau’s “Civil Disobedience” because they both use very similar writing techniques. King also described a four step to a non-violent protest, and the first one is to collect facts to determine whether an injustice law exists. This relates to Thoreau’s critique of an unjust government because Thoreau believed that every machine had

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However, Thoreau writes to the common American people because they are directly affected by the government. He is trying to connect with the people willing to take a stand and speak out against the government with him. Also, he is writing to the people who oppose the Mexican war and slavery. Regardless of who King and Thoreau were writing too, they both delivered their arguments in an effective

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It means people have the moral obligation to fight against the unjust laws. He empowered people to use the sense of morality to understand the injustice of racism. He was optimistic that members of the oppressor race would understand the deep groans and passionate yearnings of the oppressed race and eventually think positively towards their birthright of

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Henry David Thoreau wrote the famous letter “On the Duty of Civil Disobedience” while doing his time in jail for not paying his poll tax in protest against slavery and the Mexican War. Thoreau was an outspoken critic against social issues he didn’t believe in. His letter has made a big influence on many other civil rights activists. In his letter, Thoreau used many different rhetorical strategies including pathos, as well as usages of logos and diction in order to achieve his purpose in persuading his audience that the government shouldn’t intervene. Thoreau’s use of pathos was seen greatly throughout his writing.

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In 1849, in the midst of the Mexican war, Henry David Thoreau wrote his essay Civil Disobedience following a night in jail for refusing to pay his taxes. In this essay Thoreau discussed his opinions on the Government of the United States of America at the time. Thoreau felt that majority rule ignores the conscience of the individual, making voting a bet on the end result of the ballot. He called for citizens to take a stand for themselves outside of the government, to finally do what is just.

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