The Basis of Thoreau's "Civil Disobedience"

   Thoreau's "Civil Disobedience" espouses the need to prioritize one's conscience over the dictates of laws. In order to justify his claim, Thoreau uses several principals to advocate the moral need for civil disobedience. The first principal Thoreau stresses on to prove his point is "the right to resistance." Thoreau believes that resistance is the highest form of patriotism because it demonstrates a desire not to subvert the government, but to build a better one in the long term.  He asserts it is more important to develop a respect for right rather than respect for law, for people's obligations are to do what is right. Thoreau also discusses the idea of "individual conscience and mortality." He develops the idea that civil disobedience is a necessary expression of individual conscience and morality, an attempt to reconfigure the relationship between the individual and the State by making the latter more equitable and less burdensome in its treatment of the former. For government inherently lends itself to oppressive and corrupt uses since it enables a few men to impose the moral will of citizens on majority, rather than allowing people to actually express their will through it.  Finally and most importantly, Thoreau discusses the importance of a "limited government." Thoreau pushes this line of thinking to its logical limit by envisioning a society in which government is eliminated altogether because men have the capacity to be self-regulating and independent. Through such principals Thoreau is able to successfully condone his belief that government is best which governs least.