What is the purpose of the example of the person who blocks a road?
Civil disobedience is often confused with ordinary lawbreaking, but the two are different in kind. The ordinary lawbreaker hides, hoping to escape punishment. The civil disobedient acts openly, accepts the penalty, and appeals to the community's sense of justice. This openness is not a technicality; it is what makes the act a form of speech. A person who blocks a road and then walks away has simply caused an obstruction. A person who blocks it, states the reason and submits to arrest has asked a question of the society that is arresting them. The distinction also gives courts a principled basis for leniency: not because the cause is right, which judges cannot decide, but because the defendant has shown respect for the legal system while disputing one of its rules.
Answer and explanation
Correct answer: A. To contrast two actions that look the same but differ in what they communicate
- Step 1: The same physical act is described twice: walking away, versus stating the reason and submitting to arrest.
- Step 2: The example shows that the difference lies in communication.
Answer
To contrast two actions that look the same but differ in what they communicate.
Why not the others: The example makes no claim about harshness, effectiveness, fairness or the legal status of obstruction.
Practise more Protest and the law.
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