[2015] Brandon Hurst: Civil Disobedience

Civil DisobedienceBy: Henry D Thoreau

While the book tends to encapsulate the reader in theoretical and real life philosophy, it's implications, and the reader's duty as an American ,I would not recommend it to a casual reader. Someone with budding interests in such topics or a love of litterature and politics may find it interesting, but the book is not made to be a quick read. While the length is short, one read will often not be enough to fully comprehend the implications and utterances of a great man such as Thoreau. Even if he was a cheapskate.

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Transcedentalists

Altough Henry was one of the first, there were many other transcedentalists. Ralph Waldo Emmerson is one great example. Some of his work predates Thoreau, such as The American Scholar and many view him as Thoreau's mentor. Orestes Brownson, another trancedentalist encorporated Trancendentalism into his own church and variant of the christain religion. While she didn't agree with the term, Margaret Fuller, comonly known for her feminism work also held simmilar beliefs. Besides their beliefs, these people all had something in common. Along with Henry, they formed the Trancedentalist Club, and often met to talk

Civil Disobedience was written in 1849, during an era where many utopian philsophies and religous reformations were being created and perfected.

Civil Disobedience, in esscence is an essay about the right and and responsibility to disobey unjust laws and unethical government institutions. It talks about how those who follow the government blindly are nothing but slaves to those who would impose their mal-intent on us. The entire essay in essence is about how "the best type of government is that which governs less" and how when the government oversteps its bounds and does more than is neccesarry for it to exist or help its citizens, it is our right and responsibility as citizens to resist it taking more power and holding our unalienable civil rights hostage in the process. Overall, it talks about our right as citizens to civily protest when the government does more than what is neccesarry.

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The best government, is the least.

Brandon HurstPer 212/6/15

For the first time in a very long time, we were having a religous and philisophical reformation, and we actually had the freedom to do so.

Between the shakers, nativists, cult of domesticity, mormons, baptists and more, we were having more awakenings then ever.

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However, above all, Transcedentalists had one of the greatest impacts. Civil Disobedience would go on to inspire Martin Luther King Jr,

Ghandi, and many more. Transcedentalists would lead the way for many civil revolutions to come.

usually about politics, philosophy, religion and more.

Most importantly however, this was just what we needed during a time of slavery,civil war, nativism, and other such institutions.

More on transcedentalism:Here!

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