Early American Transcendentalism

America has always promoted new thinking and new ideas from religion to government. Transcendentalism is one of the many ways of thinking that bloomed out of the

Henry David Thoreau’s words that “disobedience is the true foundation of liberty” and that “the obedient must be slaves” is a political statement that never lost its topicality during the Romantic era. Thoreau is an important contributor to the philosophical and American literary movement known as New England Transcendentalism. Nature and the conduct of life are two central themes that are often weaved together in his essays and books that were published in the Romantic era of literature. Thoreau brought these two themes together to write on how people ought to live a simplistic life. His naturalistic writing intertwined cataloging and observation with Transcendentalist views of nature. Through his life and his work, Henry David Thoreau has contributed to American Literature since the Romantic era.

I have read experts from Thoreau, Resistance to Civil Government and he believes in the most limited government possible. His thoughts were accordingly similar to Kings,as well as Parks, he believed in the idea that people should not serve the government but owe themselves and their fellow men. “Disobedience is the true foundation of liberty. The obedient must be slaves.” Consequently,Thoreau served some time for refusing to pay his taxes, this way he demonstrated people to challenge society itself so they can fulfill and aim towards the objective. Till this day Thoreau has still left an impact on society,and is however, recognized up as an instance of civil disobedience.

In addition, transcendentalism influences us in 2017 because people can be true to themselves and to nonconform. In Self-Reliance, Emerson says, “This is easy in the world to live after the world’s opinion” (279). Emerson explains how important it is to be independent, to follow what makes you happy and don't care what the society have to say. In today's world, if everyone conforms we would all do the same exact thing and life wouldn’t be as excited as every day to try different things and adventure as many places. Emerson shows us to be confident with ourselves and to be against the crowd by being

In Thoreau's Civil Disobedience, he argues that when civil laws conflict with an individual's morality, the individual should follows his conscience. Thoreau like many Transcendentalists felt a less involved government was best. Thoreau wrote, "That government is best which governs not at all." Obviously, Thoreau realized that he could afford to take this open opinion on government because of the American government. But he felt that government's authority should be limited to physical matters of the country, such as infrastructure and orderliness. He felt a government that become involved in moral matters such as sobriety and slavery was a government over-stepping its boundaries. Ultimately, Thoreau and other transcendentalists felt a utopian society would be the best.

Henry David Thoreau was an American philosopher known for his interest in politics; specifically raising awareness about the injustice committed by the American government. He’s the author of prominent works like Civil Disobedience and Slavery in Massachusetts, which set the setting for the United States at the time. Both of these works follow a common theme of perseverance through difficult times and the role of the self when choosing right from wrong. Thus, he was deeply engaged in the idea of individualism, suggesting that we are “men first and subject after”. His beliefs led him to refuse to pay taxes as an act of protest against the Mexican War; he was imprisoned for a night and this sparked in him the inspiration to write Civil

Throughout history, people encounter a stage in their lives where they feel the necessity to assert their independence and challenge their abilities and self-worth. In the book, Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer, the author shares his understanding and kinship with the main character, Chris McCandless, a young man who thrusts himself into a life of solitude and a harsh environment during his search for meaning to his life. Krakauer depicts himself and McCandless as modern day transcendentalists with an abundance of competency, resourcefulness and skills as naturalists. Although McCandless chose to experience a life of solitude and face the hazards that nature presents, his lack of preparedness prevented him from completing his endeavor successfully.

Henry David Thoreau opens his essay “Civil Disobedience” by stating that the best government is one that does not govern at all (Thoreau, “Disobedience”). This is a captivating statement that suggests anarchy or revolution as a solution for political corruption. As Jefferson did in the Declaration of Independence and Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen, Thoreau is illustrating his displeasure for the government and his demand for change. The two authors are very similar in the concepts they convey in their writings, but it could be argued that Thoreau expands his ideas one step beyond Jefferson. Both Thomas Jefferson and Henry David Thoreau share similar themes revolving around political revolution and equality that ultimately provide influence both nationally and internationally.

Lyla D. Garcia Professor Barnabe Gutierrez ENGL 2327.S04 27 March 2018 Disobedience to Civil Government. Henry David Thoreau [born: 1817-1862] was an American writer and philosopher who was best known for his attacks on American social institutions and his respect for nature and simple living. Thoreau was in jail for opposing to pay his poll tax. After his release, he gave a lecture on ‘resistance to civil government’ to explain his action.

Henry David Thoreau was a transcendentalist who wrote “Civil Disobedience.” Thoreau being a transcendentalist, saw the innate goodness in humans , he believed in a higher reality than that achieved by human reasoning. Thoreau’s essay urges nonviolent resistance towards the government policies to which an individual is morally opposed. He demonstrated how he protested without being violent by not paying his taxes. Thoreau influenced many, like Dr. Martin Luther King jr. For example, Martin Luther King jr. also stood up for what he believed in and protested nonviolently like the Montgomery bus boycott that was against racial segregation. Thoreau and King ended in jail, where Thoreau was inspired to write “Civil Disobedience” and where king wrote “Letter from a Birmingham jail.”

Henry David Thoreau was an American writer and protester, who wrote the influential essay “Civil Disobedience”. In his essay, he advocates for citizens to protest against government actions that they deem unjust and to stand up for one’s rights, putting morals before law,

The American Renaissance is a tangent of the heavy Romanticism that influenced America prior, and expands upon the growing interest of the common man. The Period had writers of the Transcendentalist belief, who aspired to become larger than life itself; to ascend onto the level of a deity, and to break free from a dangerous world full of adversary. Their Dream of Ascendance, their goal of becoming independent, is the one thought that was fully realized throughout this period. The Transcendentalists at the time embraced being different, allowing themselves to become distant from the people by welcoming what was already there; nature. The period also offered the alternative view; the highly cynical attitude towards humans gave another outlook that shows how far humanity has to go to achieve this goal. The American Dream of Self-Reliance expresses itself the most during The American Renaissance; with writers such as Emerson and Thoreau showing the beliefs of the Transcendentalists both physically and philosophically, leading to the ascendance of the individual in independence.

Transcendentalism was a huge cultural movement in the nineteenth century; however, the ideas of the movement still continue to influence our society in the twenty-first century. These ideas of Transcendentalism have continued to exist throughout many years because the ideas remain relevant to society. In fact, the problems that many Transcendentalist writers encountered still happen today in new forms. These similar problems include conformity, the role of government in society, and the importance of nature. In general, people still feel that society needs to better itself for the benefit of all individuals, which is at the heart of Transcendentalism. Some of the ideas that Transcendentalists constantly defended included individualism,

Initially for my topic, I wanted to research transcendentalism and it’s impact on America. But, my mind was changed when I realized it didn’t fit the NHD topic. After I comprehended this, I decided to focus in on the theme and pick a topic more suitable for it. I then began to look for a new topic, and soon came across James Madison’s story. I started to read about him and began to admire him and his determination with the proposal of the bill of rights. I became intrigued to learn more about him and how he impacted American history.

The American Renaissance was a revolution for literature and writers in America itself that emphasized cultural authority. The American Renaissance took place throughout the nineteenth century, primarily in the early segment of this era. According to, The Norton Anthology of American Literature, “the idea of American Renaissance has been so influential in part of the literature of this time period, and was crucial to the development of American literary traditions” (4). This created a diverse movement apart of the American Renaissance reform called, Transcendentalism. The Transcendentalism period which outlined majority of the Renaissance, was led by writer, Ralph Waldo Emerson. Transcendentalism is largely defined by the ideals of, religion, self reliance, civil disobedience, individualism, idealism, nonconformity, and nature. Emerson outlined the reform and countless parts of these Transcendentalism ideals, for writers soon to follow this movement. The Norton Anthology of American Literature, presents Emerson’s language as, “…no American writer who placed greater importance on the reader’s active interpretive role in generating new meanings and new ways of seeing the world” (214). Ralph Waldo Emerson’s language was a formation composed of idealism and a philosophical literary movement. Founding father Ralph Emerson, contributed to Transcendentalism by the primary ideals of Nature, and Individualism. These ideals are all exhibited in Emerson’s essays, “Nature”,