Hi can someone pelase help me explain this quote by Martin Luther King. In addition I also I need to know what the words "personal witness" in the quote mean.
Thank you for all your help.
"I became convinced that noncooperation with evil is as much a moral obligation as is cooperation with good. No other person has been more eloquent and passionate in getting this idea across than Henry David Thoreau. As a result of his writings and personal witness, we are the heirs of a legacy of creative protest."
Dr. King says that we have a moral responsibility to not cooperate with evil. That's why he and other Civil Rights workers confronted the evils of segregation, but used passive resistance to defeat it.
Personal witness means living your life in a moral fashion and verbally spreading the word about your beliefs.
See this site about why Thoreau went to jail. This is an excellent example of personal witness.
http://www.americanheritage.com/articles/magazine/ah/1975/5/1975_5_36.shtml
thank you. I read the night thoreau went to jail but I am still a little iffy on the whole personal witness thing
Think about Thoreau's life. He believed in living a simple life in tune with nature. So he left his comfortable home and friends and built a little cabin in the woods so that he could experience nature. Of course, he communicated these thoughts and explorations with others with his book Walden. He was a personal witness to his beliefs that man should live a simple life and observe nature.
He wrote "Civil Disobedience" in which he extolled the responsibilities of breaking the law if the law is wrong.
Certainly! Let's break down the quote and explain the meaning.
"I became convinced that noncooperation with evil is as much a moral obligation as is cooperation with good."
This line suggests that Martin Luther King came to a realization that it is just as important morally to refuse to cooperate with evil as it is to actively cooperate with good. In other words, he believed that it is necessary to stand against and resist wrongdoing, rather than passively accepting it.
"No other person has been more eloquent and passionate in getting this idea across than Henry David Thoreau."
Here, Martin Luther King is acknowledging the influence and impact of Henry David Thoreau in communicating this belief. Thoreau, an American thinker and writer, was known for his essay "Civil Disobedience," which emphasized the moral duty to oppose unjust laws and government actions. King is saying that Thoreau effectively expressed this concept.
"As a result of his writings and personal witness, we are the heirs of a legacy of creative protest."
Here, "personal witness" refers to Thoreau's actions and lived experiences, which demonstrated his commitment to the ideals he advocated for. Thoreau's writings alone were not enough; he also practiced what he preached. King is saying that through Thoreau's writings and personal actions, the legacy of engaging in creative protest, or peaceful and nonviolent resistance against injustice, has been passed down to subsequent generations.
In summary, this quote by Martin Luther King expresses his belief in the moral obligation to resist evil and cooperate with good. He acknowledges Henry David Thoreau for effectively conveying this idea and emphasizes the significance of Thoreau's personal actions in inspiring a legacy of peaceful protest.