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Thoreau

            
             Thoughts of David Thoreau transferred to the German system of government.
             David Thoreau (1817-1862) is one of the most important writers in American History.
             In 1846 Thoreau refused to pay a tax because the government supported slavery in the US. While he was arrested for one day he got the inspiration to write an essay called "Civil Disobedience". In this essay Thoreau wrote about his opinion of government and special tax issues. For me as a foreigner it is interesting how Thoreau saw the roll of government two centuries ago, how it developed till today and if other governments of different countries like Germany followed these statements of Thoreau or if there are no equalities between them.
             One of the issues Thoreau discussed in his essay is the "individual roll" in government. He thought that the individuals have to keep the government responsible.
             The government's function was to represent the people. In the essay Thoreau supports Thomas Jefferson's statement: " That government is best which governs least". The government is not more than a thing and not it but the people are important. These opinions and ideas are very thoughtful and apply for today, too. 69 Years ago the Nazis won the general election in Germany and in the next years they build up a strong government (dictatorship) and did not represent the interests and opinions of the citizenship. The consequences were disastrous and terrifying. Every individual person involved in the government activities has to be responsible for its acts and behaviour. .
             Today there is a lot of civil discussion in Germany because of its history. Acts of the government are looked at very critically and especially the question of war is often closely scrutinized. This year there was a civic action group in my hometown which tried successfully to prevent a privatisation of a energy company run by the state. I think it is very important that all citizens are interested in, discuss about and try to involve in political events.


Essays Related to Thoreau

1. Emerson, Thoreau, and the Nature of Metonymy

... and symbols with which to describe his life." (2) One can see why the tradition of reading Emerson's nature writing and environmental aesthetics in sharp contrast with Henry David Thoreau's--Thoreau viewed as "Emerson's earthy opposite," as Lawrence Buell characterizes this convention--has thrived, particularly in the greening of literary studies known as ecocriticism. (3) To consider an ... metaphysical conceptualization played vital and complementary roles." (7) In this essay, I heed Robinson's caution, concerned that the various dichotomies that have come to organize critical concepti...

  • Word Count: 9971
  • Approx Pages: 40
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

2. Thoreau - Civil Disobedience, Walden, and Walking

... war against Mexico. He would only spend a night in Concord's Middlesex Jail. However, this experience opened his eyes to the government's unjust slavery laws. The lecture platform provided Thoreau with another means of expressing his developing thoughts before their reworking for publication. A few years later, one of his most influential writings, "Civil Disobedience", was published ... , urgent, visionary, serious, and impassioned. He uses these techniques effectively to persuade readers to evaluate their thinking, their morality, and to change their actions accordingly. In Civil Disob...

  • Word Count: 2159
  • Approx Pages: 9
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: High School

3. Lewis and Thoreau

... . He is an aspiring socialite and lives his life to impress others. In almost all respects, he is the polar opposite of Thoreau. Thoreau, of the antebellum 1840s, instead lives simplistically and in solitude. He wishes to leave society for a time and pursue mental clarity ... city." Babbitt is a satirical character, portrayed for the reader to look down upon alternatively in pity and disgust, but not without some sympathy. Thoreau, by contrast, takes a completely different approach, challenging the reader not to conform but to rebel. "But when the friction comes to have ... language and ...

  • Word Count: 3576
  • Approx Pages: 14
  • Grade Level: High School

4. Henry David Thoreau

... sentences that grab at your mind and stay in your ear (Burleigh 20). This book has helped many people think about and change their lives. Thoreau summed up his reasoning for living by Walden Pond by saying, "I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the ... to confide themselves to the imported symbols alone. All the true growth and experience, the living speech, they would fain reject as "Americanisms" " (Paul 53). Thoreau's philosophy is we cannot see, hear, touch, taste, or smell beauty and strength as we can a flower or a rock. But by being close to na...

  • Word Count: 2165
  • Approx Pages: 9
  • Grade Level: High School

5. Henry David Thoreau

... home life for their children. Soon after Henry's birth, they moved to nearby Chelmsford, and then to Boston. Economic misfortunes continued to plague the Thoreau's until the family moved back to Concord in 1823. "There Henry's father began a modestly successful pencil making business, and by 1833 the family ... , chiefly to have access to their library) and to take part in the debates and colloquiums (Concise 350). In the spring of 1836, Thoreau dropped out of Harvard due to the development of tuberculosis that was to plague his life (Concise 350). Henry later returned to Harvard and ma...

  • Word Count: 2638
  • Approx Pages: 11
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: High School

6. Thoreau's Perceptions on Economy

... tells us what things he was trying to leave behind and why he chose to leave those things with society. In order to better understand Thoreau's disposition to society and inclination to simplicity we must look closer at the point he was trying to convey to the townsfolk of Concord, Massachusetts ... farms, livestock etcetera. He sees these as curse rather than gift and states, " These are more easily acquired than gotten rid of" (Thoreau 5). What Thoreau means by this, is that if you inherit a farm, livestock or in modern times, a business, you become a slave to inheritances and spend y...

  • Word Count: 1001
  • Approx Pages: 4
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

7. Thoreau and Principles for Living

... and pursuit a solitude life in the woods as such must have required either a strong affection for nature or certain hatred against civilization. In Thoreau's case he was simply in love with the divinity of nature and desire for a deliberate life. Of course he was a lover of nature ... desired to simply separate himself from the community's tiresome series of communication, useless and meaningless accustomed greetings, and pressure of wealth and social standings. Thoreau desired to experience the life in nature as an educated man, write about what he thinks about it, and possibly give a n...

  • Word Count: 1541
  • Approx Pages: 6
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

8. Civil Disobedience by Thoreau

... his argument for severing ties with government and further exemplifies the civic responsibility of those oppressed by it laws to reframe from participation in it's institutions. A critical look at Thoreau's, Civil Disobedience initially reveals the authors effective mixture of poetry and social commentary. This style greatly lends itself to the popular writing style of that time. Utilizing this method ... imagination and emotional fervor of the readers to whom the piece is intended. This approach is likely well received by those who read this essay, given that many others in Thoreau's c...

  • Word Count: 1220
  • Approx Pages: 5
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

9. Henry David Thoreau

... Walden. He was also a great thinker and many times his ideas left him in the minority. Although many disagreed with him, Henry David Thoreau expressed his beliefs and ideas through his actions and words. He gave lectures on his views of slavery and openly supported the abolitionist John Brown. ... by their intentions, they would deserve to be classed and punished with those mischievous persons who put obstruct- ions on the railroads - (Thoreau 110). Thoreau changes tone in the middle of the essay and begins stating what can be done to fix the "useless- government. He praises the ... bet...

  • Word Count: 2858
  • Approx Pages: 11
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: High School

10. Comparison of Emerson and Thoreau

... essay will compare the similar beliefs and ideas that these two transcendentalists brought forward that tried to shape a youthful America. Henry David Thoreau tests the transcendentalist ideas about nature by living at Walden Pond, where he discovers that simplicity in physical aspects brings openness to ... was now an independent country from Great Britain and flourished under the Triangular Trade and mercantilism. With the coming of industry and capitalism, Thoreau and Emerson found themselves on the far left of the economic spectrum. But these two transcendentalists", who did not thin...

  • Word Count: 1342
  • Approx Pages: 5
  • Grade Level: High School

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