Seminar questions for “Civil Disobedience” by Henry David Thoreau

OPENING (choose one of the following to begin the discussion of the document)

1. Do you like Thoreau and his ideas? Why or why not?

2. What word, phrase or line do we need to understand to realize the importance of Thoreau’s work?

3. What does Thoreau want us to believe?

CORE: (use these as a guide for your discussion)

1. Who is ultimately more important the individual, the citizens as a whole, or the government?

  • What role should we (as a citizen) play in society?
  • What are the limits of government should follow in intruding in our daily lives?
  • Can the government restrict your beliefs?
  • Are there beliefs or actions that the government should try to alter?
  • Should we be forced to pay taxes for other people’s needs?

2. Can we reach the government that Thoreau’s advocates?

  • Are we a democracy in Thoreau’s eyes? In your eyes? In the textbook definition of democracy?
  • What areas of our government today would Thoreau attack? Defend
  • Are there leaders today that Thoreau would admire? Detest?

3. In discussing the role of the individual, which quote best outlines your philosophy?

  • Thoreau:“if the injustice is part of the necessary friction of the machine of government, let it go… perchance it will wear smooth - certainly the machine will wear out…. If it is of such a nature that it requires you to be the agent of injustice to another, then , I say, break the law. Let your life be a counter friction to stop the machine.
  • Socrates:“an individual must do what his city or country demands of him or he must change their view of what is just.”
  • Kennedy:“ask not what your country can do for you but what you can do for your country.”
  • What problems or limitations do you see with the other views?
  • What should be the role between the individual and the government?

4. Under what circumstances should conscience outweigh the law?

What should the consequences be for someone who breaks the law?

Is there ever a valid reason to break a law?

Can you see yourself breaking a law for a greater cause? Explain

CLOSING: (choose one)

1. What are some situations today where we have examples of people who are working for changes in the name of justice and fairness?

  • To what extent should they go to accomplish their goal?
  • Do you applaud or criticize citizens who work for change?
  • What advice would Thoreau give them?

2. What are the circumstances that would force you to be like Thoreau?

3. If Thoreau were alive today how would he judge America?

Seminar Questions on Walden

Opening (use one of these questions to begin your discussion):

  1. Do you like Thoreau and his ideas? Why or why not?
  2. What word, phrase or line do we need to understand to realize the importance of Thoreau’s work?
  3. What does Thoreau want us to believe?

Core (use the following questions as a guide in your discussion):

  1. Introduction:
  • Describe the imagery involved in the line “to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life.” What does this mean?
  • To what does Walden refer when he writes “to live so sturdily and Spartanlike as to put to rout all that was not life…”
  • Why is it important that consistently uses infinitives (un-conjugated verbs ex: to go, to do, to teach) in opening paragraph?
  1. Main Reading selection:
  • What is Thoreau saying about human nature when he says we have the “Santi Vitus’ dance.”
  • What is the purpose of mentioning naps? What does man do after his nap?
  • What is Thoreau saying about government-run establishments? (Refer to the post office.) What do you believe he would rather have?
  • “Time is but a stream I go –afishing it. I drink at it; but while I drink I see the sandy bottom and detect how shallow it is. Its thin current slides away, but eternity remains.” Explain this quote.
  • “My head is hands a feet.” How does this compare to the “Santi Vitus’” quote from earlier?
  1. Conclusion (use the following questions as a guide in your discussion):
  • Why did Thoreau leave? What does this say about his prior claims?
  • Why is his trodden path important?
  • Is Thoreau going on a sea voyage? Explain the end of the first paragraph on the right side of page 255.
  • “Building castles in the air” is a saying that means to dream fancifully. What does the last sentence say about Thoreau’s beliefs about human nature?

After-Reading Questions (answer each question):

  1. Thoreau asks us to be nonconformists. What does that mean, and how does that relate to your life?
  2. Refer to the section in which Thoreau speaks about naps. How does this relate to your relationship with news, media, etc…?
  3. Would you want to “power down?” Would you want to live “off the grid?” Could you simplify? Could you get rid of your possessions?

Seminar Questions on “Self Reliance”

Opening (use one of these questions to begin your discussion):

  1. Do you like Emerson and his ideas? Why or why not?
  2. What word, phrase or line do we need to understand to realize the importance of Thoreau’s work?
  3. What does Thoreau want us to believe?

Core (use the following questions as a guide in your discussion):

  1. What does Emerson define as genius? What does he mean?
  2. What does he mean when he writes “In ever work of genius we recognize our own rejected thoughts: they come back to us with a certain alienated majesty.”
  3. What is his purpose in mentioning inflexibility?
  4. Why does Emerson believe it is shameful to take “our own opinion from another?”
  5. “Envy is ignorance and imitation is suicide”
  6. What does he mean by this?
  7. What analogy does he use to describe hard work of inventing, self-discovery, and self-editing?
  8. “The eye was placed where one ray should fall, that it might bravely testify of that particular ray.”
  9. What is the ray? Is it self-discovery, one’s own faults, etc…?
  10. Why should someone speak his own confession? Why is he normally afraid to do so?
  11. “Trust thyself: every heart vibrates to that iron string.”
  12. How has Emerson prepared (or built up) the reader for this statement?
  13. What does he mean by the “Eternal? “ How is the “Eternal” working within man?
  14. Why might someone choose to “advance on Chaos and the Dark?” What does man have to support him has he chooses this?
  15. “Society everywhere is in conspiracy….”
  16. What are Emerson’s thoughts on society?
  17. What does the individual surrender within society?
  18. What is a non-conformist?
  19. “…the great man is he who in the midst of the crowd keeps with perfect sweetness the independence of solitude.”
  20. What is the meaning behind these words?
  21. What is Emerson’s purpose in ending on this note?

After-reading (answer all of the following questions):

  1. What does non-conformity look like today?
  2. Who is an example of a non-conformist? Are they well-liked, appreciated, respected? (Be nice.)
  3. Would you be willing to be a non-conformist knowing everything you would have to give up?