Thoreau published the essay “Resistance to Civil Government” in 1849 and he criticized the government of the U.S. Being against slavery as well as against the war with Mexico, America was the aggressor from his perspective. When he disobeyed the law and did not pay taxes for the poll, he was imprisoned for one night after which his friend paid instead of him to get him out. This essay was written one year after this incident.
Thoreau believed that government had to be just, but he did not believe in anarchy. He wrote: “It is not a man's duty, as a matter of course, to devote himself to the eradication of any, even the most enormous, wrong; he may still properly have other concerns to engage him; but it is his duty, at least, to wash his hands of it” (Thoreau 5). What he meant was that an ordinary man should stop supporting the government which did not work on its own improvement. When it comes to hypocrisy, Thoreau was against slavery and all of the laws that were not just. He used to hide slaves who managed to escape at his home in spite of the government act which was against this. This was a crime, but he took chances because slavery was something that he could not tolerate. “Resistance to Civil Government” made a lasting impact on the practitioners of the protest that could lead to the improvement of the government in a way which was not violent.
This essay is theoretical as well as practical and it deals with the political problems of the time when it was written. Thoreau writes about democracy and he believes that the citizens have to stop supporting a government that is not just because political matter should be done with conscience as they affect lives of many people. Thoreau is writing about idealistic way of exercising democracy and this is his philosophy. His essay is significant because he discusses the general conduct of people as well as about particular events. What he is most worried about is injustice and he sees that it could only be improved if people would stop supporting such a government. Thoreau believed in individualism and that is what he practiced himself.
He feels skepticism towards the government and is against people trusting the government at all costs. He believes that people who support unjust governments are as guilty as the people from the government. A person should not lose their own integrity and succumb to the governmental pressures because that is the mentality of the flock. He says: “I think that we should be men first, and subjects afterward. It is not desirable to cultivate a respect for the law, so much as for the right” (Thoreau 2). This was his point of view and he did not expect that all the people follow it. Thoreau is very judgmental about people who support injustice in anyway, but he is right in doing so because the government is supposed to work in the best interest of the people and not against it. According to Thoreau, a person should not make a contribution to a world which is badly organized. He is a strong individualist because he believes that every person has to keep their integrity which means that they must not support injustice. Even though democracy is about the rule of the major number of people, nobody should support any kind of law which is not just. He shows on his own example that he is willing to go to prison but that he is unwilling to pay a tax which he considers bad. This will make the society think about the fact that honest men are imprisoned. People today must understand Thoreau’s beliefs about slavery and they understand his protests against it.
Emerson published the essay “Self-Reliance” in 1841 and another version in 1847. This essay incorporated many of his journals which he wrote over a long period of time. Emerson is against conformity and he supports self-reliance which makes a person virtuous. Just like Thoreau, Emerson also talks about individualism as opposed to the acceptance of the rule of the majority. He says: “To believe your own thought, to believe that what is true for you in your private heart is true for all men, — that is genius” (Emerson 1). The opinion of other people does not matter as much a relying on one’s own thoughts and ideas. It is important for the person to have faith in themselves. He says: “We are like children who repeat by rote the sentences of grandames and tutors, and, as they grow older, of the men of talents and character they chance to see” (Emerson 8). This is not right and people need to cherish their individuality. This was also what Thoreau was talking about when saying that people should not support injustice, not even when it is on the level of the government chosen by the majority of people.
Just like Thoreau, Emerson believes in individualism above all: “Whoso would be a man must be a nonconformist. He who would gather immortal palms must not be hindered by the name of goodness, but must explore if it be goodness. Nothing is at last sacred but the integrity of your own mind” (Emerson 3). The difference between Thoreau and Emerson lies in the fact that Emerson believes that a person should rely on their own reasoning even if it is evil instead of following the rules of society. Thoreau believes in morality above all and in justice. Moreover, Emerson believed that people who were against slavery were supposed to care more about themselves and their families instead of thinking about the misery of black people which is a complete opposite of Thoreau’s beliefs.
There are both differences and similarities between Thoreau’s and Emerson’s ways of thinking about hypocrisy and both of them believe that hypocrisy is when people are not true to themselves and are conformists who support the rule of the majority at all costs. The difference is that Thoreau believes in morality, while Emerson believes in satisfying one’s pleasures and personal interests above all.
Works Cited
Emerson, Ralph W. Self-Reliance. New York: Arc Manor, 2007. Print.
Thoreau, Henry D. Resistance to Civil Government. Prescott: Warfield Press, 2010. Print.
