"The Gettysburg Address"-Abraham Lincoln

Henry David Thoreau's main philosophies that a majority of people seem to follow within later writings was Thoreau's philosophy of civil disobedience. Civil Disobedience is the belief in doing the greater good and not following the distinct and structural laws that make up the basis of how this country is run(). Now some may think, well how is it allowed that poeple can just break the laws.  It would be a madhouse in the country for sure.  But, the thing is, this kind of behavior is frowned upon and not allowed.  In fact, Henry David Thoreau went to jail, or prison, to stand up for what he believe was right.  This is kind of reminiscent of the way Abraham Lincoln approached The Gettysburg Address.  Thoreau did not believe in unjustified crime.  This is ironic because to the government, Thoreau's crime most likely sounded unjust.  This is also a clear indicator of how Lincoln's Gettysburg Address relates to the thoughts and philosophy(civil disobedience) of Henry David Thoreau.  Lincoln did not believe that Slavery was the right thing.  The south believed full and well that slavery was acceptable and nothing was going to stop it from occurring within the southern states.  This is where it can get confusing. In some of the Northern states, slavery was widely unaccepted and against the law, but when Lincoln is reaching out to the southern states, it is almost as if he is preaching against the law of several states and preaching rebellion.  Why would the southern states like this?  They wouldn't because it is against their laws.  Although what Lincoln thought was truly the right thing to do in his mind, it was still going against the state's rules.  Even if he was president, the president can't rule everything, including other people's opinion.  Thoreau believe that it is everyone's responsibility and their human right to do what is morally correct(Graves). I can see that Abraham Lincoln has the same feelings. This is what links him to the philosophy of Civil Disobedience of Henry David Thoreau.

Lincoln, Abraham, and Roy P. Basler. "The Gettysburg Address by Abraham Lincoln."NetINS Showcase. Abraham Lincoln Online. Web. 07 Feb. 2012.

Graves, Roy Neil. "Responsibility in 'Civil Disobedience'." McClinton-Temple, Jennifer ed. Encyclopedia of Themes in Literature. New York: Infobase Publishing, 2011. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc.