What does Thoreau believe is his only obligation?
What is man’s only obligation? This is that Thoreau says the only obligation he has the right to assume is the obligation to follow his own conscience. Here is a quote that shows that.
How does it become a man to behave toward this American government today?
How does it become a man to behave toward this American government to-day? All men recognize the right of revolution; that is, the right to refuse allegiance to and to resist the government, when its tyranny or its inefficiency are great and unendurable.
What does the standing army is only an arm of the standing government mean?
“The standing army is only an arm of the standing government.” which he is trying to get across that the army that the people think of as “the government” is only a small piece to the whole. “Governments show thus how successfully men can be imposed on, even impose on themselves, for their own advantage.
What does Thoreau mean by make a beaten track for ourselves?
He means that we all fall into our complex routines of daily life and we make a beaten track for ourselves. Also, he is trying to say that once a path is made, it is very easy for others to follow it. This way, he is making his own path and following it himself, thinking differently.