Henry David Thoreau takes the motto "A government that governs least governs best" (1) to heart in his essay "Civil Disobedience". Throughout his controversial masterpiece, Thoreau criticizes the government for having too much power and interfering with the American population, but he also blames the governed for mindlessly obeying any law that is passed. Thoreau uses countless literary devices in order to make the touchy opinions presented in "Civil Disobedience" easier to understand and more convincing. Through use of innumerable similes and metaphors, Thoreau makes his arguments and ideas easier to understand, and effectively convinces anyone who reads his essay that the government is "each instant losing some of its integrity" (1), and that it should be done away with immediately.
Thoreau immediately attacks the American government as weak and useless in the opening paragraphs of his essay. Thoreau states that "This American government… is a sort of wooden gun to the people......

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Title: Thoreau
Approximate Word Count: 395
Approximate Pages: 2 (250 words per double-spaced page)

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