Henry David Thoreau; Civil Disobedience

Series No.: 041

ISBN: 978-1-892295-93-4, Pages: 48

American Literature, Nonfiction

One of the most important documents of American political thought, Civil Disobedience eloquently states a position that has influenced the thinking of Gandhi, Martin Luther King, and many figures of the 1960s protests against the Vietnam War. Thoreau argues that…

The progress from an absolute to a limited monarchy, from a limited monarchy to a democracy, is a progress toward a true respect for the individual.… There will never be a really free and enlightened State until the State comes to recognize the individual as a higher and independent power, from which all its own power and authority are derived, and treats him accordingly.

Author of Walden, Henry David Thoreau is one of the America’s most important 19th century thinkers.