civil disobedience reflection paper

Nandi Lewis
POL 166
Professor: Barry Murdaco
Lehman College


                                  Reflection Paper
                                  Civil Disobedience by Henry Theory

"A common and natural result of an undue respect for law is, that you may see a file of soldiers, colonel, captain, corporal, privates, powder monkeys and all, marching in admirable order over hill and dale to the wars, against their wills, ay, against their common sense and consciences, which make it very steep marching indeed, and produces palpitation of the heart. They have no doubt that it is a damnable business in which they are inclined. Now, what are they men at all? Or small movable forts and magazines, at the service of some unscrupulous man in power?"

         In this quote by Thoreau, he emphasizes on how the government and the people working for the government do not honor the law it self but the business aspect of it. Thoreau expresses that the government main goal is to satisfy its self and not the people, who supposedly they are serving. He states by using soldiers, colonel, captain, corporal, privates, powdered monkeys, to describe the people serving the country as avoiding their conscience. They are serving the people not by their will or based of what is right and wrong but what is profitable for the men who run the government. By stating that they are peaceably inclined to what is happening; Thoreau shows that these men are aware and are also interested in a profitable gain. Consequently, the government profitable gains are maintained by ignoring their conscience, the people's conscience and training willing men who want to serve the country to annul their conscience.

         The reason I picked this part of the essay as a quote is because it highlights the main idea of the government serving its own interests. It is true that if the government was to consider what is right or wrong, they would struggle with fulfilling their goals. But why allow us to think that we are free in expressing anything in the first place? I do believe that freedom goes to a certain limit especially when one is able to exercise power over the things that an individual is in need of. After picking this particular part from the reading, I believe that many people do move like machines and robots in order to fulfill their needs, goals, and greed. The government continues its self greed behavior by promoting and encouraging others to get on board by which they introduce benefits to them. In conclusion, avoiding ones conscience creates social order to keep people in categories to maintain power.