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The Evolution Of Transcendentalism: Ralph Waldo Emerson

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The very foundation of transcendentalism was a movement known as romanticism. Towards the 18th century Europe began the age of romanticism which placed emphasis on emotion and spirituality rather than convention. Once this new era hit the New World in the 19th century, transcendentalism began as an American form of romanticism in a sense. The most famous authors of this era were having their own moral conflicts at the time this social movement began. Ralph Waldo Emerson, for example, had recently begun to question religion. Known as the father of transcendentalism, Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote abstract, poetic philosophies that went beyond the physical words he wrote. In order for a reader to comprehend his complex meaning behind every word, the

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