Thoreau explains that the moral need for civil disobedience
is when the government is unjust and against our conscience. Throughout the
selection Thoreau says “that government is best which governs least.” This
shows how Thoreau distrusts the government. That is, when a government is
unjust, people should refuse to follow the law. And a person is not obligated
to clean our world from the evil, but he/she is obligated not to participate in
such evils. He also claims that according to the government a person must fight
for what they think is unjust, but in his point of view a person must follow
his/her conscience because it is the driving force that makes a person think of
change and making the world fair. Thoreau illustrated the slavery as a principle
to justify his claim. He mentioned his own experience as a model for how to
stand against the government as he protested
against slavery. He refused to pay taxes and spent a night in jail. In this way,
he dissociated himself from the government, "washing his hands" of it
and refusing to participate it because he thought that if he paid the taxes, he
would be supporting the government he feels is in the wrong and has no moral
authority.
