On The Duty Of Civil Disobedience Rhetorical Analysis

As former President of the United States, Thomas Jefferson once said, “We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” Thoma Jefferson implies that the people are not to be controlled nor deprived of their rights, no matter their skin color or race. In Henry David Thoreau’s essay, “On the Duty of Civil Disobedience,” he influences the people on the fact that a government is not made nor ruled by government officials, but by the people of the country. Henry David Thoreau provides coherent details on why he wants a government who works fast and is organized. He motivates the reader on the fact that a government should work fast and organized. Specifically, Thoreau states, “I heartily accept the motto,- “That government is best which governs least”; and I should like to see it acted up to more rapidly and systematically”(Thoreau 1016). This illustrates that Thoreau states that a government who does not have full control over their country, is best since …show more content…
More importantly, his purpose is to motivate the reader to realize that they should have power and do what they believe is correct. For example he states, “There are thousands who are in opinion opposed to slavery and to the war, who yet in effect do nothing to put an end to them...” (Thoreau 1019). This indicates that many civilians want change in their country, but they do nothing to alter the situation. This reveals that people have the power to help others, but choose to not do anything in order to do what they believe is right. Here, he is urging change onto to the reader since h notices that many oppose to slavery but do not do anything in order to fix the situation. Ultimately, Thoreau believes that politicians care more about money than their own