Ralph Waldo Emerson Research Paper

"In the woods, we return to reason and faith. There I feel that nothing can befall me in life, - no disgrace, no calamity (leaving me my eyes), which nature cannot repair. Standing on the bare ground, - my head bathed by the blithe air and uplifted into infinite space, - all mean egotism vanishes. I become a transparent eyeball. I am nothing. I see all. The currents of the Universal Being circulate through me; I am part or particle of God."

Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, “Nothing is at last sacred but the integrity of your own mind.” Emerson is a firm believer of maintaining self-reliance and values rather than following the crowd. He also explains that in order to be truly successful in life, a person must make decisions and trust in his or her judgment. In today’s society, teenagers are more likely to not be self-reliant because the teens feel they will be judged for having different beliefs. People today need to realize that they should not conform to be like the rest of the world, they must not depend on the judgment and criticism of others, and people must refuse to travel somewhere in order to forget their personal problems. Through Emerson’s piece, readers are able to

his profession as a pastor in search for vital truth and hope. But his father

Emerson, like his student Thoreau, as was a major member of the transcendental movement that occurred in America during the time period. Marked by a focus on the spirituality of nature and

Ralph Waldo Emerson was born in 1803, in Boston Massachusetts, born into a prominent family. When he was just 8 his father passed away and unfortunately financial hardship for the family followed. His father was a Boston Minister 9 generations before him were ministers as well. His mother ran a boarding house to earn money to support the family which consisted of six children .They often had not enough to eat. (Ralph Waldo Emerson Biography.” -Life, Family...) Waldo and his brother Charles had only one overcoat between them. Other kids in school would often mock them, "Whose turn is it to wear the great-coat today?” (Shulman, Frank “Ralph Waldo Emerson)

Transcendentalism, a powerful intellectual and philosophical movement founded by Ralph Waldo Emerson in the early nineteenth century, was guided by the principle that individuals are inherently good and function at their best when they are independent and self-reliant. Striving to produce a philosophy that would serve a new nation, transcendentalists believed that religious institutions and political parties would eventually corrupt the natural pure goodness of man. Transcendentalist ideology further asserts that by conforming to the standards set by society, man would not only lose the ability to follow his own instincts, but also become incapable of freely expressing himself. In his essay Self Reliance, Emerson writes, “Be yourself; no base imitator of another, but your best self. There is something, which you can do better than another. Listen to the inward voice and bravely obey that. Do the things at which you are great, not what you were never made for” (Emerson). Other writers and intellectuals such as Frederick Douglass, Walt Whitman, and Emily Dickinson have adopted Emerson’s views on individuality and have expressed these ideals through their work. The spirit of individuality and self-reliance, key principles of Transcendentalism, are noted in Frederick Douglass’ Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, Walt Whitman’s poem “Song of Myself” and Emily Dickinson’s poem “Nature (790).” Through their literary work, Douglass, Whitman, and Dickinson share

During the late 1820’s and 1830’s in the United States, transcendentalism came into light as a response to take a stand against the broad condition of spirituality and intellectualism. Many pieces of written work from that time period utilized the transcendentalist literary style. Ralph Waldo Emerson’s essay “Self Reliance” contains a dense amount of characteristics related to the transcendentalism period. The transcendentalist elements exploited in the essay helped develop the ideas of individuality and nonconformity in society. Emerson uses transcendental core beliefs throughout the essay to project his thoughts and feelings and to inspire the readers to think and act more as individuals.

The transcendentalist movement shaped America in the 1860s by inspiring citizens to be free thinkers and hardworking individuals who would lead their lives to the fullest. The movement was led by three revolutionary writers named Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, and Walt Whitman, three icons who challenged Americans to be individuals. Through his works “Self Reliance” and “Nature”, Ralph Waldo Emerson preached of nonconformity and creating a personal destiny. Henry David Thoreau emphasized simplicity and making the most of life by seizing every opportunity presented, in his work “Walden”. Walt Whitman encourages real life experience and the value of hard work throughout his various poems. The principles preached by the

The Spark That Lit Transcendentalism Saved or damned, those on Earth could experience a connection between their souls and Heaven from the messages in transcendentalism inspired work. In the Nineteenth Century New England, there was a movement in which there was rapid growth in philosophy, religion, and literature. (Carbone). After several religious reforms within the era, Ralph Waldo Emerson shone a light on the artistic aspects of one’s mind. (Turner).

In the early mid-nineteenth century, a philosophical movement known as transcendentalism took root and flourished in America. It evolved into a predominantly literary expression which placed an emphasis on the corruptions of organized religion, political parties, and societal involvement; above all, the movement promoted the wonders of “nature” and its deep connection to the divine. The adherents through transcendentalism believed that knowledge could be arrived through intuition and contemplation of the internal spirit rather than by the means of the senses. As the two most prominent figures in the transcendentalist movement, Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau whole-heartedly embrace the principles of nature

Ralph Waldo Emerson							I am writing this essay on the beliefs and thoughts of Ralph Waldo Emerson on the subjects of individuality, society, government, technology, and spirituality.

American essayist, lecturer, and poet, Ralph Waldo Emerson in his essay "self-reliance" exemplifies his philosophy and or idea that people have to think for themselves, and have their own thoughts. Emerson was the founder of the Transcendentalist movement of the mid-19th century, which was a literary, political, and philosophical movement, which promoted spiritual thinking instead of scientific thinking based on material things. People were starting to follow their feelings, and did what felt correct for them. Emerson's purpose is to argue that people need to avoid conformity. Emerson wrote to inspire, and in hopes of efficiently changing society. He argues that to be a man you have to follow your own ideas and conscious. Emerson wrote in

Born in Boston, Massachusetts on May 25, 1803 as the fourth child in a family of eight, Ralph Waldo Emerson was

The theme of individualism is present in several of Ralph Waldo Emerson’s works. It was also his philosophical views on how to live life. He believed that human beings had remarkable capabilities, more than they can possibly identify. With these capabilities a person should govern themselves, not be governed by a society. Emerson also believed that nature played a large role in how man should act and to follow nature’s actions of growing without obstruction (“Nature”). This is why he lead the Transcendentalism movement in the nineteenth century, along with Theodore Parker, Frederic Henry Hedge, Amos Bronson Alcott, Margaret Fuller and Henry David Thoreau (Lewis). This philosophy was not only significant then, it was imperative throughout times in history.

In Ralph Waldo Emerson’s various essays, poems, and other writings, he puts significant emphasis upon defining what constitutes success among men. “The American Scholar” and “Self-Reliance,” two of Emerson’s most well-known essays, describe in detail the attributes of a successful, enlightened human being; the most essential characteristics, judging by Emerson’s continued reiteration of their value, are most certainly self-trust, nonconformity, and the ability to live in the present. Contemporary American society reinforces these qualities in many ways, but they often seem to be superseded by materialism, insecurities, lamentations, and other ephemeral distractions. According to Emerson, the only way to be considered