Civil Disobedience and Its Ethical Meaning

Abstract

The goal of the discussion presented in the article is to recognize the ethical dimension of civil disobedience. Setting out to achieve that goal, the author analyses the difference between civil disobedience and other forms of social protest, and attempts to define its essential substance. With that goal in view, she identifies the key features and the subject matter of an act of disobedience. Having explained the civil character of disobedience, she then goes on to discuss its moral and ethical significance. Emphasizing the personal character of civil disobedience, the author presents it as an expression of ethics.