Thoreau's Role In Civil Disobedience

In the times of Thoreau and, even long before that , the idea that the common man could fight against the higher class man without bearing arms, and without the shedding of blood was near unheard of. Although he was not the first to bring forth the idea that men do not have to wage war to end injustice, his ideas were well put together, and now that the printing press had become well established, reached many more people than any paper would have in previous years. His ideas, both then and now, have proved why it is so influential to keep your ground without dropping to the level of your oppressor, however, sometimes the only words a man will hear come from the mouth of a blade. Thoreau first stated that he, when disagreeing with something he would merely not do it. Though, as with the cases of Martin Luther and other word only protesters, though they did not turn violent on their oppressors, they were given violence in return. These protesters were thrown into prisons much as Thoreau himself was when he refused to pay his poll-tax, and as he stated, “As they could not reach me, they had resolved to punish my body...”

In some instances this was used by teachers or labor workers to get better wages or longer hours. These strikes, where the boss of said establishment would have to give in, fire staff, or lose profit; instead of losing profit or having to go through the process of hiring new workers after firing the old, the boss would give a small portion of what the workers want to them whilst keeping his profit. These strikes were effective, but time consuming, and caused profit losses to many companies during their