Why does Henry David Thoreau think imprisonment is ineffective? A. Because governments can only lock a person up physically, not
mentally B. Because prisoners know that governments don't have true authority to lock them up C. Because prisoners tend to train one another on how to commit crimes D. Because prisons only serve to make prisoners hate the government more
Answer: A. Because governments can only lock a person up physically, not mentally
In section three of "Civil Disobedience," Henry David Thoreau describes his own experience defying the law. He argues that even though he was imprisoned in body, the government could not imprison him mentally or defeat his spirit. He says that in fact, he was more free than most citizens, because he was free in his mind:
<em>"I saw that, if there was a wall of stone between me and my townsmen, there was a still more difficult one to break through, before they could get to be as free as I was."</em>
