Mind map of On the Duty of Civil Disobedience

EPUB · 64 nodes

What you add

pg71-images-3.epub

EPUB

~9,400 words becomes 64 nodes

Excerpt from the original: On the Duty of Civil Disobedience by Henry David Thoreau 1849, original title: Resistance to Civil Government 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. Carried out, it finally amounts to this, which also I

On the Duty of Civil Disobedience

Henry David Thoreau, Project Gutenberg eBook #71 (public domain)

View source

Interactive mind map

Mind map preview: On the Duty of Civil DisobedienceLoading the interactive mind map…

Drag to move, click a node to fold it.

Open in editorFree account
Try with your own file

All 64 nodes

The full mind map as an outline.

On the Duty of Civil Disobedience

  • Critique of Government
    • Ideal government: "governs least," eventually "governs not at all"
    • Government as an expedient, often inexpedient and abused
    • Standing government is an arm of the standing army
    • American government: a tradition, losing integrity, wooden gun
    • Government hinders progress rather than furthering it
    • Trade and commerce often obstructed by legislators
  • The Individual vs. The State
    • Demand for a better government, not no government
    • Majority rule is based on physical strength, not justice
    • Conscience should guide decisions, not majority rule
    • Men should be men first, subjects afterward
    • Respect for right is more important than respect for law
    • Law does not make men just; it can make them agents of injustice
    • Individuals serving the State as machines or with their heads, without conscience
    • Heroes and patriots serve with conscience, often treated as enemies
    • Refusal to be a mere tool or "clay"
    • Association with a slave's government is a disgrace
  • The Nature of Justice and Law
    • Right of revolution exists when government is tyrannical or inefficient
    • Present crisis: slavery and unjust war require rebellion
    • Paley's principle of expediency versus doing justice at any cost
    • Nations agree with Paley in practice but not always in what is right
    • Merchants and farmers prioritize commerce over humanity
    • Others are indifferent or merely express opinions without action
    • Voting: a game with a moral tinge, not vital concern for right
    • True freedom asserted through one's own vote, not majority decision
  • The Imperative of Action
    • Conventions and politicians are not the focus for independent men
    • The "respectable" man drifts from position and despairs of country
    • Need for genuine men with conviction
    • Duty to withdraw support from unjust government, not wait for majority
    • Action from principle is revolutionary
    • Unjust laws exist: break them rather than obey or wait for amendment
    • Government's fault for remedies being worse than evils
    • Conscious denial of authority requires proportionate penalty
    • Let your life be a counter friction to stop the machine of injustice
    • Individual responsibility to not lend oneself to wrong
  • Personal Experience and Resistance
    • Tax-gatherer as the only direct interface with government
    • Refusal to recognize the slave's government
    • One honest man's withdrawal could abolish slavery
    • The prison experience: a novel perspective, seeing the State's limitations
    • State confronts the body, not the mind or conscience
    • Imprisonment is chosen over seizure of goods for the poor
    • Money corrupts, making men subservient to institutions
    • Difficulty of living honestly and comfortably under unjust government
    • Refusal of poll-tax leads to imprisonment
    • Prison walls are a waste; true confinement is in the mind
    • The State is timid and half-witted
    • "My Prisons": a history of personal resistance
    • Refusal to pay poll-tax is a declaration of war on the State
    • Paying tax for another abets injustice
    • Avoid bias from obstinacy or public opinion
    • Resistance to brute force vs. human force
    • Seeking excuse for conformity, but ultimately choosing higher law
  • Towards a Better State
    • Government's authority requires sanction and consent of the governed
    • Progress towards recognizing individual rights
    • Democracy is not the last improvement; seek true respect for the individual
    • A State that can afford to be just, treating individuals with respect
    • A State that allows individuals to live aloof, fulfilling neighborly duties
    • Such a State prepares for a more perfect future State
    Mind map of On the Duty of Civil Disobedience — made with MindLM