Excerpt from "Civil Disobedience" Common Lit Answers

PART B: Which TWO phrases from the text best support the answers to Part A?

"...but 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." ( paragraph 6) "Let your life be a counter-friction to stop the machine... As for adopting the ways which the State has provided for remedying the evil, I know not of such ways." ( paragraphs 6-7)

PART B: Which quote best supports the answer in Part A?

"It is not my business to be petitioning the Governor or the Legislature any more than it is theirs to petition me; and if they should not bear my petition, what should I do then?" ( Paragraph 7)

PART A: Which statements best summarize the TWO main claims of the text?

Citizens must challenge and attempt to change the wrongs of the state; it is not enough to work within the system. Individuals have a responsibility to disobey laws that are inherently unjust and in conflict with their morals.

How does paragraph 6 contribute to the development of the main ideas of the passage?

It supports the idea that we must not participate in injustice.

PART A: Which statement best describes Thoreau's views on petitioning the government to effect change?

Petitioning the government is useless because it does not always result in action.