William Cullen Bryant And Transcendentalism

“There is a time in every man’s education when he arrives at the conviction that envy is ignorance; that imitation is suicide; that he must take himself for better, for worse, as his portion; that though the wide universe is full of good, no kernel of nourishing corn can come to him but through his toil” -Ralph Waldo Emerson in Self Reliance. Ralph Waldo Emerson was a transcendentalist. Transcendentalism is a philosophical movement that originated in the 19th century and was primarily influenced by Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau. Transcendentalists’ main beliefs are: self-reliance is essential to one’s life, nature is divine, every person should have an optimistic outlook, and humanity needs to adhere to their personal morals and beliefs. In today’s world we still see a multitude of the beliefs of transcendentalism.

The fear of death follows from the fear of life. A man who lives fully is prepared to die at any time.” (Mark Twain). This quote from the famous American writer is the basis for what became one of the hardest ideas to comprehend, death. Death has always been a complex term, causing one to struggle with what the true definition is. It is also hard to wrap your mind around what does it truly mean to die. These are the questions we long for the answer. Whether we acknowledge it or not, death has always been feared by many. Death remains an impossible question, one that has been unexplained since beginning of time. Even though dying is a natural, we as a human race still fear it. What can be done to defeat this never-ending battle? According to Montaigne’s “To Philosophize is to Learn to Die” and Cory Taylor’s “Questions for Me About Dying” we can overcome this by living to the fullest, living with no regrets, living a legacy, and lastly not fearing the inevitable. If you want to conquer the question of life, live in the moment.

Bryant went through many hard times throughout his life; from losing family members to being socially isolated. He lost many family members and close friends. The one death that hurt him the most was his father’s. Bryant’s father was a very important part of his life; his father taught him many things throughout his lifetime. His father submitted five of his poems into the North American Review, one of those were the first version of “Thanatopsis”. It is said that Bryant mourned his father’s death and that his death is what gave him the emotional passion to write with.

This poem talks about nature and death. William Cullen Bryant shares that nature can make death less painful. He says that when we start to think about death, we should go outside, and look around and listen to the natural earth sounds. This is supposed to remind us that when we die, we will mix back into the earth. The poem tells us that when we die, we will not be alone. We will be with every other person that has ever been buried, In the ground, which in this poem is called the “great tomb of man”. It also tells us that even those that are still living will soon die and join in the great tomb of man. This poem is meant to comfort those that are afraid of dying and death in general. At the end of the poem, we are told to think of death as

Bryant explains that death, like life, is a part of nature, which was a loved and cherished aspect of the nineteenth century. In the period of Romanticism, nature was an important ideal; it was viewed as the source for everything. In “Thanatopsis”, Bryant uses nature as a comfort zone, saying that when one dies, they will become a part of nature. He says that the bodies will be used to nurture the earth. Bryant also mentions that we once were made as a part of nature and that people will die as a part of it as well. He states: “…and lost each human trace, surrending up thine individual being shalt thou go to mix forever with the elements.” Bryant is saying that bodies will decay and eventually become one with the earth and nature. Along with becoming a part of nature, Bryant explains that the deceased people will be with some of the finest people who walked the earth.

A month ago, you asked me to inform you on the goals and ideas of the transcendentalist philosophers. After some heavy research on the topic, I am ready to inform you to the finest of my abilities. How about we start with a little background and history? Sounds good? Great! First, transcendentalism is a movement that started in the early to mid-nineteenth century. According to definitions online, a transcendentalist Philosopher is a person that accepts ideas as a way of understanding life relationships rather than religious beliefs. Moreover, Transcendentalism describes a very modest idea. Men, women, children, and people in general are knowledgeable about themselves and their surroundings that transcends beyond what they can see, feel, taste, or touch. Most believe that this knowledge occurs as a result of intuition and imagination rather than logic or sense. As a result, the group declared cynicism of all recognized faiths, believing that spirituality lived in the individual, and the arbitration of a church was burdensome to attaining enlightenment.

Transcendentalism is an idealistic,philosophical,and social movement that developed in New England around 1836. It taught that divinity pervades all nature and humanity and that by experiencing nature one could experience divinity. A Transcendentalist is someone who lives outside the confines of societys rules, finding inspiration and meaning through experiencing nature. Transcendentalism rose as a reaction against 18th century rationalism,sensualism ,and calvinism, it is composed of a variety of ideals spanning from Hindu texts and other such various religions. Several authors came about that influenced and pushed the transcendental movement to progress and evolve past what it originally was, among them being Ralph Waldo Emerson, (who is credited with pushing Transcendentalism to become a major cultural movement) and other such

William Cullen Bryant is the author of Thanatopsis. This poem is the one describes the link between death and nature. “Nature“ is the main central idea of Transcendentalism, and each author has different ideas about nature, and their writing methods are different. Emerson, is the author who is main representative of Transcendentalism, and Bryant have a slightly different style of Emerson.

Although a person loses individuality at death, he becomes a part of nature. Bryant says in this line, "Earth, that nourished thee, shall claim/Thy growth, to be resolved to earth again," (22-23). The poet explains that people will return to the Earth that provided them with nourishment when they die. Bryant writes, "To mix for ever with the elements, /To be brother to the insensible rock/And to the sluggish clod, …"(26-28). He asserts here that once they are dead they will mix with

Nature itself is very important in the world and as for self-reliance it was seen as being something you should be. Along with social reforms being something that is going against what society deems right. Transcendentalist believed that nature was a main aspect of life and that it was

Another technique that Bryant uses in “Thanatopsis” is setting. This entire poem takes place somewhere in nature. However, when both aspects of the poem are looked into, the poem may also take place in the speakers mind. The speaker is using nature as a way to think about death. In a way, it seems as though nature will help make death more understandable. Bryant’s “Thanatopsis” contains specific details: Go forth under the open sky, and list/ To Nature’s teachings, while from all around--/ … /--Comes a still voice”(14-17) There are many key words in this single thought. “Go forth under the open sky” means when one dies and ascends upon heaven. Another key phrase is “Nature’s teachings.” It is what nature has to teach about death to help the speaker understand the concept of death. Also, it sets the theme for the entire poem. In lines 16 and 17 when

William Cullen Bryant was well known for writing poems on nature, and he beautifully shows us the Romanticism view of one of their key themes. As with numerous other poems from the Romanticism Period, Bryant uses the imagery and ideas of a woman to convey his love for nature. An example of this trait is in the poem, “Thanatopsis”, Bryant’s most famous work. The first three lines of the poem shows both his love for nature and that he is going to use the image of a woman for the rest of the poem. “To him who in the love of nature holds/ Communion with her visible forms, she speaks/ A various language; for his gayer hours” He expressly says

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,

There have been numerous religious rebellions throughout history, but none quite like that of Transcendentalism. This movement embodies the idea that spiritual growth can be achieved through personal journey instead of conflicting with organized religion. By the time of the movement’s onset, newly gained religious freedom in the United States allowed for new ideas and beliefs to prosper freely. At the heart of this movement was Transcendentalism philosophy famous ambassadors, Ralph Waldo Emerson and apprentice Henry David Thoreau. These men believed nature is what forces us not to depend on other ideas but to develop our own.

Transcendentalism was largely influenced by the earlier Romantic Movement which was filled with innovative and imaginative ideas. Similar to the Romantic's Transcendentalist wanted to break away from the old European models of organized institutions such as religion and politics. There was also the strict confines of the Age of Reason's rationalist way of thinking that stirred up a rebellious reaction within the literary traditional period of Transcendentalism. Transcendentalist believed religion and politics negatively tainted an individual’s innocence.