The first step in research is to analyze your own research objectives. This will help you to find the information you need more quickly and efficiently.
When doing your analysis you should identify keywords that:
You also need to think about:
This is not a linear process. As you begin to explore, you may discover new keywords. You may change the focus your topic slightly, and get new ideas about where else to search.
The Columbia Encyclopedia defines civil disobedience as the "refusal to obey a law or follow a policy believed to be unjust. Practitioners of civil disobedience usually base their actions on moral right and employ the nonviolent technique of passive resistance in order to bring wider attention to the injustice. Risking punishment, such as violent retaliatory acts or imprisonment, they attempt to bring about changes in the law..." (view more)
Relevant Topics
Because civil disobedience is such a broad subject, you will need to narrow the scope of your research topic to something more specific. This will help you to focus your research and save you from getting overwhelmed by it.
Below you will find some examples of people, places, times, and subjects that are associated with civil disobedience. Focusing on specifics like these are good ways to narrow your topic. Follow the links for further information on that specific topic/term.
| Place or time | Person | Subject |
|---|---|---|
| Civil Rights Era | Mahatma Gandhi | Immigration |
| Salt March | Malcolm X | Marriage Equality |
| Vietnam War | Nelson Mandela | Women's Suffrage |
Related Terms
As with most research topics, there are many different terms associated with civil disobedience. Below are some such terms, follow the links for further information on that specific topic/term.
| Civil rights movements | Democracy |
| Conscience | Nonviolence |
| Conscientious objector | Pacifism |
| Crime | Resistance movement |
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