Thoreau's View of Civil Disobedience Sifting through these posts, it has nearly been two years since anyone has added to Jon-Jon's claims about Civil Disobedience. There are several issues that need to be addressed, but first of all, I do agree with Jon-Jon on the point that Ben fails to see the true purpose of what "Civil Disobedience" means. This type of action does not mean the complete removal of a government; however, I think Jon-Jon has overspoken what the purpose of Civil Disobedience (by Henry David Thoreau) is about. As someone who followed the ideas of Emerson, Thoreau put the Trancendentalist ideas and theories to the test