Civil Disobedience

Introduction - 💼 Pack your bags

As you learned earlier in this course, Transcendentalism was an important philosophical and literary movement that flourished from about 1836 -1860. For a review of Transcendentalism, watch the video linked below.

American Transcendentalism Video

Watch the video below for an introduction to American Transcendentalism.

One of the most famous Transcendentalists was Henry David Thoreau. Thoreau valued the following key aspects of Transcendentalism: Equality, Individualism, Self-Reliance, Integrity, and Optimism.

Transcendentalists promoted the theme of individuality vs. conformity in their words and actions. They believed in taking a stand, even if it meant that you had to stand alone.

Henry David Thoreau

Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862) sought time alone in nature his entire life. He built a cabin on his property near Walden Pond and lived there for two years while writing his first book and maintaining a detailed journal of his experiences.

View the full text from the image above.

Henry David Thoreau was:

o Born in Salem, Massachusetts
o A descendent of Judge Hathorne of Salem Witch Trials fame
o Added 'w' to his name to distance him from his family's infamy
o Married a Transcendentalist and lived at Brook Farm for a year
o Rejected the optimism of Transcendentalism
o Did most of his writing while working day jobs
o Moved his family around a lot, including to Europe
o Was friends with Melville, Longfellow, Emerson, Thoreau, and Louisa May Alcott's family
o Was buried on Author's Ridge in the Sleepy Hollow Cemetery in Concord, Massachusetts

Now you will read an excerpt from a work by Thoreau, Civil Disobedience (Resistance to Civil Government). In this essay, Thoreau describes the night he spent in jail for refusing to pay his poll tax. He refused to pay his poll tax because he did not want to support two government policies with which he disagreed: the Mexican-American War, which he claimed was motivated solely by greed, and the passage of the Fugitive Slave Act, which made it illegal to help escaping slaves from the South and required escaped slaves to be returned to their owners by non-slave territories and states.

Crash Course Video

For more information on historical events in the United States during this time, watch the Crash Course History video linked below.

War & Expansion: Crash Course US History #17 by Crash Course is licensed under CC BY 4.0. Source: War & Expansion: Crash Course US History #17

Reading Assignment

You are only required to read the first two pages of this Civil Disobedience Text.

🚀 Blast-off Wrap-up

Today, we looked at how transcendentalist literature highlights the theme of Individuality vs. Conformity. Transcendentalists like Henry David Thoreau valued equality, self-reliance, and standing up for one’s beliefs.

Thoreau’s essay “Civil Disobedience” is a great example. He spent a night in jail for refusing to pay a tax supporting policies he opposed, showing his commitment to individualism. Happy reading! Feel free to reach out with any questions.

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