What is Thoreau advocating when he says let every man make known what kind of government would command his respect and that will be one step toward obtaining it?

Thoreau would seem to have preferred no government at all. However, what he sought was “at once a better government. Let every man make known what kind of government would command his respect, and that will be one step toward obtaining it”. In this statement, he is asking people to speak out and not to be passive.

What did Thoreau believe about the standing army?

Thoreau believes the military deserves to be criticized. He says that the “many and weighty” objections to a “standing army … deserve to prevail” (part 1, par. 1).

Why does Thoreau compare government to a wooden gun?

Thoreau uses the metaphor of the government as a “wooden gun” to illustrate that government is useless. He supports this point when he explains that American citizens, not the American government, are responsible for America’s accomplishments.

What does he mean by when men are prepared for it that will be the kind of government which they will have?

“That government is best which governs not at all”; and when men are prepared for it, that will be the kind of government which they will have. This PARADOX means that governments should trust their citizens to make their own decisions or that, in an ideal world, people would not need governments at all.

What metaphor does Thoreau use in the passage?

What metaphor does Thoreau use in this passage? If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music which he hears, however measured or far away. He speaks of personal goals as though our ideas are a form of music.

What is Thoreau tone?

Thoreau’s tone is full of passion for what he believes in. He tries to show the pragmatic subtext of his philosophy but often gives the overriding tone of proclamation and defence of his ideals.

What is it but a tradition though a recent one endeavoring to transmit itself unimpaired to posterity but each instant losing some of its integrity?

This American government—what is it but a tradition, though a recent one, endeavoring to transmit itself unimpaired to posterity, but each instant losing some of its integrity? It has not the vitality and force of a single living man; for a single man can bend it to his will.

How does Thoreau believe the government has been abused and perverted?

As it is, government rarely proves useful or efficient. It is often “abused and perverted” so that it no longer represents the will of the people. Thoreau says that government does not, in fact, achieve that with which we credit it: it does not keep the country free, settle the West, or educate.

Who does Thoreau explicitly compare the government to in these lines?

Thoreau also compares the government to an “unscrupulous man in power” who subjugates all citizens to its edicts, however immoral or unjust. To Thoreau, the government is a malevolent power that uses its “black arts” to turn a living being into “a mere shadow and reminiscence of humanity….”

Who does Thoreau explicitly compare the government to in lines 186 188?

To what does Thoreau compare government? Thoreau personifies the State “as a lone woman with her silver spoons.” He casts government not as a mechanical agent of injustice but as a feminized object of pity. You just studied 8 terms!

What does Thoreau mean when he says what is once well done is done forever?

For it matters not how small the beginning may seem to be: what is once well done is done forever. Thoreau believed that individuals could be free only if their actions were true to their own beliefs, with or without the support or approval of the community, or of friends and family.

What is Thoreau trying to convey through his metaphor about the government’s strength?

Thoreau’s metaphor for the government in “Civil Disobedience” is a machine. Just like a machine, the government has problems that can cause it to break, like friction within its structure.