I’ve recently read Henry David Thoreau’s Civil Disobedience, Solitude, and Life Without Principles (⭐⭐⭐⭐ My rating). The world and society, in general, have become a place I do not recognize but I know thanks to my love of history that many have felt the same throughout the course of human history. At first, I thought, perhaps I didn’t like change, being a creature of habit. Upon further reflection though, I realized that wasn’t the issue. I realized, like Thoreau that in order to be happy, in order to thrive, I must live according to my nature, and that nature is to be free. Not freedom from responsibility or freedom from consequence, but free to choose. Freedom to live life according to my conscience.
As indicated by his quote above, if something is deprived of the ability to live according to its nature, it dies.
What is the nature of a person’s thoughts? They are private, firstly, and therefore are essentially unknowable by others lest I make them known. I make choices based on those thoughts and my thoughts are informed by my experiences which I have gained as a direct result of my choices.
If my interpretation of the nature of my thoughts is true, then to deprive me of my ability to make a choice, about anything, is essentially an attempt to control what I experience and therefore influence my thoughts. It amounts to something similar to Orwell’s 1984 and the use of Thought Police. I always found this concept very interesting because it seems like an impossible thing to accomplish, controlling how and what someone thinks. Our thoughts are our most intimate of human experiences. Lately, though, I now understand how such a thing could be possible. Censorship and laws that limit an individual’s freedom.
It doesn’t stop with censorship and the like though does it? This is where Thoreau’s concept of Civil Disobedience comes in. Many influential people have employed the concept as a way to counter injustice and corruption, but more people need to follow their courageous example.
Freedom is not now, nor has ever been freely acquired. Complacency, apathy, and indifference have plagued society. The world is screaming with examples. Let’s not waste the opportunity in this time of change to make a difference that means something. Start small.
“A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step” Lao Tzu
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