Ralph Waldo Emerson's The Poet

During the nineteenth century, American schools have caused a raise of differences towards the method of educating students. In his essay, “Education”, an influential American thinker and writer, Ralph Waldo Emerson recommends the parents to take in consideration for their children’s lives by creating a better teaching in which the students can learn/imply the basic fundamentals on their strive for success by doing it on their own. Emerson emphasizes his claim by encouraging a teaching method that children use their “naturel” by utilizing paradox, metaphors and analogy.

"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

Ralph Waldo Emerson, a leader of the Transcendentalist movement in the nineteenth century, once expresses his opinion on nonconformity when he wrote, “To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.” His words express what many people have aspired to be. These words from Ralph Waldo Emerson highlight the idea of nonconformity which is one of the main pillars of the . Humans, having naturally social instincts, find it challenging to risk going against the crowd for fear of isolation, so Transcendental ideas can be difficult to execute amid the pressures of society. Ideas from this movement, particularly nonconformity, are some of the main themes in Dead Poets Society directed by Peter Weir. While Neil’s character in Dead Poets Society initially displays characteristics of Ralph Waldo Emerson’s Transcendentalist ideas from “Self-Reliance,” he fails to continue his Transcendental endeavors proving that while Transcendentalism is possible, society ultimately causes individuals to conform.

This was the battle started with the “shot heard ‘round the world” as Ralph Waldo Emerson observed.

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

Author Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote, “Unless you try to do something beyond what you have already mastered, you will never grow.”. I think this quote is an explanation of a lot going on right now, and I will show that by using my own experiences as a guide. To grow even more you need to push past mastery. This could include sports, by pushing yourself even harder, and life by stepping out of your comfort zone.

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)

To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.” Ralph Waldo Emerson’s words describe what many people aspire to be. This idea of nonconformity is one of the main pillars of Transcendentalism. Transcendentalism is one of the main themes in the movie Dead Poets Society directed by Peter Weir. Many characters in the movie display Transcendental ideas. However, it is very difficult with the pressures of society. While Neil’s character in Dead Poets Society initially displays aspects of Ralph Waldo Emerson’s Transcendentalist ideas from Self-Reliance, eventually he fails to continue his Transcendental endeavors proving that while Transcendentalism is possible, society ultimately causes many to conform.

Ralph Waldo Emerson gave a speech to the men of the Phi Beta Kappa Society at Cambridge University entitled “The American Scholar” in 1837. The speech focused on the main ideas of transcendentalism as well as how different factors in society affect man’s ability to realize that they are their own individuals. Harold Bloom, a well known literary critic who evaluated topics such as the bible and Shakespeare, believed that Emerson’s writing was the template for all future authors. Bloom believed that adversity allows people to have a deeper understanding of the world. However, Emerson focused on the loss of knowledge in the society due to the misunderstanding of younger generations in his time period while Bloom mainly focused on how Emerson's views on individualism and transcendentalism affected all writing whether admitted or not. Harold Bloom was correct in his critique, “Out of Panic, Self Reliance” published in 2008, when he confirmed Ralph Waldo Emerson's view point in his speech “The American Scholar” (1837) stating that overcoming adversity is an essential part to gaining wisdom and forming self- reliance by comparing it to current political events in order to show once again that Ralph Waldo Emerson was very influential to not only authors but to the overall evolution of man’s thoughts.

First, Emerson describes words as signs of natural facts, and he thinks that all words have spirit in them. Emerson states that “every natural fact is a symbol of some spiritual fact,” (789) and he indicates that natural facts or words can be traced back to its real meaning, spirit. For example, Emerson says that “Light and darkness are our familiar expression for knowledge and ignorance; and heat for love,” (789) and this shows that nature is linked to something spiritual. Also, Emerson suggests that moral laws are similar to the laws of nature, and he assumes that we cannot think ourselves as something outside of nature since “parts of speech are metaphors because the whole of nature is a metaphor of the human mind” (791). Furthermore, the statement that “this relation between the mind and matter is not fancied by some poet, but stands in the will of God, and so is free to be known by all men” (792) supports Emerson’s idea that the language is to let us understand the world, for all of us, not just poets. In addition, Emerson assures that “by degrees we may come to know the primitive sense of the permanent objects of nature, so that the world shall be to us an open book, and every form significant of its hidden life and final cause” (793). From this, we can feel that he convinces us that even though we are unsure of the meaning of nature right now, finally we will be able to

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.

Often regarded as the leader of the Transcendentalist literary movement, Ralph Waldo Emerson believed that the individual must look inward to find truth and knowledge. He emphatically stressed that one must practice self-reliance: the ability to trust one’s intuition and not conform to societal standards. Through the use of strict form, powerful imagery, and a wise tone, Emerson’s poem “Intellect” urges us to stay true to ourselves by refusing the practice of blind obedience.

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