Evaluating

Civil

DisobedienceAntigone

by Sophocles

EXPLORING CONNECTIONS

• How is literature and art an example of civil disobedience?

• What craft or structural decisions does the writer use to protest events of that time period or place?

• What are your reactions to the literature and art?

• What details caused you to react in this way?

DEFINITION

•According to Merriam-Webster civil disobedience is “the refusal to comply with certain laws or to pay taxes and fines, as a peaceful form of political protest.”

OPINIONS

• “An individual who breaks a law that conscience tells him is unjust, and who willingly accepts the penalty of imprisonment in order to arouse the conscience of the community over its injustice, is in reality expressing the highest respect for the law.” –Martin Luther King, Jr.  

•  “An unjust law is itself a species of violence. Arrest for its breach is more so. Now the law of nonviolence says that violence should be resisted not by counter-violence but by nonviolence. This I do by breaking the law and by peacefully submitting to arrest and imprisonment.” –Mahatma Gandhi

• “If the machine of government is of such a nature that it requires you to be the agent of injustice to another, then, I say, break the law.” –Henry David Thoreau

POP CULTURE MUSIC

• "Ohio" written and composed by Neil Young (1970)

• The Kent State shootings—also known as the May 4 massacre or the Kent State massacre—occurred at Kent State University in the U.S. city of Kent, Ohio, and involved the shooting of unarmed college students by the Ohio National Guard on Monday, May 4, 1970. The guardsmen fired 67 rounds over a period of 13 seconds, killing four students and wounding nine others, one of whom suffered permanent paralysis. Some of the students who were shot had been protesting against the Cambodian Campaign, which President Richard Nixon announced during a television address on April 30. Other students who were shot had been walking nearby or observing the protest from a distance.

• There was a significant national response to the shootings: hundreds of universities, colleges, and high schools closed throughout the United States due to a student strike of four million students, and the event further affected the public opinion—at an already socially contentious time—over the role of the United States in the Vietnam War.

POP CULTURE MUSIC

In 2014, Urban Outfitters offered for sale a "Vintage Kent State Sweatshirt," spattered with what appeared to be fake bullet holes or bloodstains, at a cost of $129. Urban Outfitters claimed that it was "not our intention" to allude to Kent State shootings with red-stained, holed Kent State shirt.

POP CULTURE MUSIC

• With a partner annotate the song’s lyrics for:• Author’s purpose• Significant language and structural choices• Key shifts in tone• Be prepared to share your observations

POP CULTURE MUSIC

• Eight of the guardsmen were indicted by the grand jury. Civil action was also attempted against the state of Ohio and the president of Kent State. A unanimous verdict declared wrongful death and injury and awarded the victims’ families a monetary sum. Today, a memorial stands representing the permanent markers placed in the Prentice Hall parking lot to designate where the students fell.

POP CULTURE IMAGES

• British artist Banksy—graffiti master, painter, activist, filmmaker and all-purpose provocateur—was named one of the world’s 100 most influential people in 2010.

• His satirical street art and rebellious witticisms combine dark humor with graffiti executed in a distinctive stenciling technique.

• Such artistic works of political and social commentary have been featured on streets, walls, and bridges of cities throughout the world.

SOLDIER’S PAINTING PEACE (2007)

POP CULTURE IMAGES

• Answer the following questions with a partner:• What is being protested? How do you know?• What is the author's purpose?• What significant visual components (color,

proximity, framing, alignment, etc.) enhance the author’s purpose?• Do you agree or disagree with the view of the

artist? Explain your answer.

POP CULTURE IMAGES

• Repudiates the repression of free speech that often takes place when a nation is at war, in an effort to maintain the appearance of consensus.

• Men who are armed with deadly weapons fear for their lives, which highlights that repression in a society may occur not only a physical but also an intellectual level.

• This is especially ironic when the justification for the war in the Middle East is to spread liberty and democracy.

RIGS OF WAR (2012)

ARMY SKELETONS (2012)

POP CULTURE LITERATURE

• Civil disobedience is not only an action. Many instances of peaceful protest stem from well written letters, speeches, narratives, etc. Well known works include:• Antigone—Sophocles • “Civil Disobedience”—Henry David Thoreau• “I Have A Dream”—Martin Luther King, Jr. • “Letter from Birmingham Jail”—Martin Luther

King, Jr.• “On Nonviolent Resistance”—Gandhi

HOMEWORK

•Bring to class a pop culture artifact which represents civil disobedience. This may include images, essays, poems, speeches, songs, etc. Make sure you do some research and are well prepared to explain the significance of your artifact.