Thoreau's Use Of Rhetorical Devices In Civil Disobedience

Have you ever felt the need to disobey authority in a fight for change? If so, then you are similar to some of the greatest leaders of monumental movements throughout history, including people like Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr. These leaders worked their way towards change through nonviolence and civil protesting. However, they were not the first to tread a peaceful path to change. One of the main influencers of this idea was none other than Henry David Thoreau, who wrote an explanation peaceful disruption in his piece Civil Disobedience. This influential piece of literature stemmed from Thoreau’s resentment toward the Mexican War, which he believed had been provoked by President Polk without congressional consent. Thoreau wanted to write

Diction is simply word choice, which Thoreau uses for clarity and precision to convey his message in the best way possible, which coincides directly with imagery which is essentially word pictures. Thoreau’s diction is the key to opening the reader’s mind into his. An example of his excellent use of diction is his use of the word expedient to describe the government. By this description, Thoreau means that the government is simply a resource to the people, and nothing more than that. He furthers this idea through his use of imagery to construct a word picture for better clarity when he states, “It is a sort of wooden gun to the people themselves; and, if ever they should use it in earnest as a real one against each other, it will surely split.” Again, the author solidifies his point of the limited extent of the government as an active entity within the country. Although this piece was written over a century ago, it is still understandable to modern society because of Thoreau’s ability to clearly convey his ideas through

Civil Disobedience directly targets the feelings of Americans and human beings alike. Thoreau continually compliments the American people, and puts America's success into their hands as opposed to the government's hands. He questions the legitimacy of the government in a way that persuades the reader to do so as well. Most of all, he appeals to the want for a successful country and freedom to be an individual which America had come so far to attain. In one of the most powerful statements of this piece, Thoreau states, "The character inherent of the American people has done all that has been accomplished; and it would have done somewhat more, if the government had not sometimes got in its way." (389) Immediately, any American citizen is directly touched by this statement, and it gives a sense of truth and realization. Thoreau is aiming to challenge the status quo; the understanding that the government is responsible for any success of the country. For several people, he actually seemed to draw a sense of anger and resentment toward the government, which was exactly his goal. Emotional appeal is a major factor in making Civil Disobedience a timeless literary