Henry David Thoreau’s “Civil Disobedience” talks about how many people have too much reverence for the law.
Thoreau wrote it during the time of the Mexican-American War, and critiqued the soldiers for being blind followers. He resented that people would often speak of injustice, but do nothing to change it. He believed that people should follow laws until they believed that they were unjust. He wanted the government to be better and wanted people to see that they have more power than they think.
I agree with Henry David Thoreau that many people blindly follow things without doing their own research.
During Thoreau’s time, he saw the soldiers of the Mexican-American War as more machines than men. He said, “The mass of men serve the state thus, not as men mainly, but as machines, with their bodies.” He believed that the soldiers didn’t think for themselves, and instead, just did what they were told.
This can be seen in today’s world when people follow political movements or parties. Many people align themselves with everything in a certain party, but sometimes they don’t even realize that they disagree with some things.
Many people get their news from only one source, which often leads to a biased point of view on many issues.
Instead, people should look at multiple sources and formulate their own opinions on each topic.
The world needs more people that have opinions of their own, rather than followers of a majority.
Ryan EastmanDolores
