Essays on Ralph Waldo Emerson

The 19th century was a time of vast change for the entire world, from the birth of electronics to the publishing of On the Origin of Species to the rapid expansion of the world powers. It is, perhaps, no wonder that it is also at this time of great, and sometimes terrible, human feats that a movement began that defied human imperialism over other humans and over nature itself, thus was the birth of Transcendentalism. This was a movement started in on the east coast of the United States, primarily in Massachusetts, that sought to uplift the individual and ...

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Introduction The philosophy of transcendentalism is based on the belief that there exists a higher form of knowledge or reality that could not be fathomed by human reason, which humans can achieve. As defined by scholars, transcendentalism is the idea that people “have knowledge about themselves and the world around them that ‘transcends’ or goes beyond what they can see, hear, taste, touch or feel”. Transcendentalism is not a new concept. Historically, the idea of transcendentalism can be traced to the works of the Greek philosopher, Plato and the doctrines of major religions such as the ancient ...

Ralph Waldo Emerson’s essay entitled “Self-Reliance” is one that praises the notions of non-conformity, stating that only the brave ones have the power to say no to the hypnotic influence of the masses. When a man believes in himself, knows what he must do and gives his voice enough potency to be heard, he has the power to live a rich and fulfilling life, simultaneously revealing spiritual and philosophical essence of life itself.

As one of the major philosophers of the movement referred to as Transcendentalism, Ralph Waldo Emerson delves deep into the notion of the human self, the ...

Passion is a strong and powerful emotion that drives us to further achievements and gives us a sense in life. Life without passion would probably be just a meaningless existence. Emotions have always been a subject of discussions by different philosophers. Such thinkers as Plato, Descartes and Spinoza analyzed passion in different ways and provided their concepts of passion. Passion has been categorized in six categories. These are hatred, wonder, hatred, sadness, and love (Descartes on the Emotions). When I read a book, I dive into a new, unknown, and undiscovered world. A book makes me worry about the character as if it is my ...

Self-reliance

“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) (Nina et al, 1094) In this quote, Emerson urges people to remain themselves at all times. He insists on people obeying their natural instincts, trusting in their intrinsic abilities and doing the things that they can do best. He believes that by so doing everyone will be able to rely in him/herself. ...

Throughout history, philosophers have often clashed heads in regards to the definition and understanding of the human self. Many have formulated a myriad of theories that attempt to decipher the true meaning and motivations of the human self. Two of the moist prolific philosophers of the exploration of this aspect were Immanuel Kant and Ralph Waldo Emerson. Emerson was an American philosopher born and raised in Massachusetts. On the other hand, Kant lived in an earlier era and was German by birth. It was Kant’s original transcendental deductions that later acted as an influence to the New England Transcendentalism ...

Every person needs passion in their life. It is a driving force that gives life a sense and makes it meaningful. People may have many interests and that means that their intellect is being stimulated by more than one area in life. Voltaire said that a person can change everything, except their passions. What I am passionate about is art, especially film art. In my opinion art and culture are very connected. I like to watch films an make some short films. That is a very personal process and it makes a person grow. The soul makes a selection of what we should consider ...

. Published in 1844, Ralph Waldo Emerson’s “Experience” explores the plethora of unanswered questions and ample confusion that occurs when man attempts to walk through nature and understand it. “Experience” is directly related to human subjectivity and how people see the world, citing experience as the fundamental facet by which human experience and life itself is measured. Emerson’s primary argument in “Experience” is that we form and shape our own realities through the subjective nature of experience, even when we do not realize it; by embracing the moment, and becoming self-reliant, we can life the most ideal version ...

Before the American Revolution, the most important controversy in Concord was the concern of the tax-supported church. The controversy also saw issues, whether the people in the faraway areas want to set up their own church or readmit to the Church of Concord. Dr. Joseph Lee was the focus of trouble. Another central figure was William Emerson, the new pastor of the church and the grandfather of Ralph Waldo Emerson. The government lowered the price of the commodities, tricking the colonists into accepting the tax. The community required a special force called Minutemen, who were the citizen soldiers in order ...

Human Dignity and Conscience in the Essays of Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau and Maya Angelou

At first glance, it seems like a very difficult task to find any real connection between the writings of Maya Angelou on the one hand and Henry David Thoreau and Ralph Waldo Emerson on the other. After all, Emerson and Thoreau were Northern white men of the 19th Century who had never personally experienced the oppression of slavery of the type of segregation and inequality that Angelou grew up with in Stamps, Arkansas in the 1940s. Even though they both opposed slavery, and Thoreau was willing to defy the law and go to jail to uphold his principles, in the ...

Ralph Waldo Emerson, an American poet, a prolific essayist, pre-eminent lecturer and philosopher, belonged to the current of Transcendentalism. According to the transcendentalist thought, the center of reality is the self and everything that happens externally is radiated from the inner self only. His main work was his essay about Transcendentalism, called ‘Nature’ published in 1836 and is one of the finest works in English Literature. His other notable contributions are essays like “Self-Reliance” and “The American Scholar”, and poems such as Alphonso of Castile, Celestial Love, Concord Hymn, Beauty, etc. The main themes and principles of Emerson’s writings ...

American Transcendentalist Literature

The Transcendentalist movement consisted of a group of people that were skeptical of the status quo in religion, science and politics. They studied philosophy and wrote great literature. In fact they even influenced the writing of the Declaration of Independence. Ralph Waldo Emerson is the American who is most often thought of when transcendentalism is mentioned. During the height of the popularity of the movement he was at the center. On December 9, 1841 Emerson gave a speech titled “Transcendentalism” at Boston’s Masonic Temple. In it he strongly stood up for less rigid attitudes towards nature for example he ...