In Ronald Dworkin's "Taking Rights Seriously", he argues that the government cannot limit the right of individuals to do what they believe is morally right, as long as those individuals are willing to do it. pay the legal consequences. In Henry David Thoreau's “Civil Disobedience,” he argues that men should always do what they think is right, especially when they think some aspect of government is not working. These arguments support civil disobedience to uphold one's morality, but each has flaws regarding the relationship between the individual and society that must be corrected before the theories can be applied to society as a whole. Dworkin begins with the assumption that government does not. establish or guarantee moral rights and that people have more rights than those provided by the government. He states that in the case where someone tries to defend a moral right by breaking a law, there are normally two parties who judge the act: conservatives and liberals. Conservatives will be more likely to obey the law, and liberals will be more sympathetic to the disobedient. Dworkin argues that both ultimately have the same point of view: men must follow their conscience, and if in doing so they break the law, then they must accept the consequences and submit to the judgment of the State. In other words, "...men have the duty to obey the law but they have the right to follow their conscience when it conflicts with that duty"#. He distinguishes between the use of "right" as a noun or as an adjective: one may have the "right" or prerogative to act in a certain way, but they may not be "right" or justified in acting that way. The government must understand this when creating legal rights; one may have moral prerogatives in one's behavior, but rulers... middle of paper... are made out of bickering over small aspects of their beliefs. But if individuals from a minority group come together and decide on a general topic, they will be more likely to gain support and be more effective in bringing about change. Both authors advocate the duty of men to follow their consciences when they disagree with the government. But both underestimate the power of a group compared to the power of an individual. Without a change in society, there can be no lasting change. Individuals can certainly inspire and motivate others to take action, but ultimately, large-scale action is needed for rights to be won. Works Cited Ronald Dworkin, Taking Rights Seriously, (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1978) 187. Henry David Thoreau, “Civil Disobedience,” in Walden and Other Writings (United States of America: Barnes and Noble, 1993) 279.