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TRANSCENDENTALISM
IN THE WORKS OF
RALPH WALDO
EMERSON
Andrew Rhinehart  English 1102
Transcendentalism Defined
 American literary, philosophical, and political
movement during the 19th century
 Centered around Ralph Waldo Emerson
 3 main themes in transcendentalist thought1:
 Response to Unitarianism
 Search for faith
 Aversion to commercialism
1. Miller, Perry. The Transcendentalists. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard UP, 195
Ralph Waldo Emerson
Biography
 Born in 1803 in Boston, Massachusetts
 Became a Unitarian pastor after graduating
from the Harvard School of Divinity
 Death of his wife, Ellen Tucker, in 1831
exacerbated his crisis of faith
 Resigned from the clergy and traveled to
Europe
 Strong advocate for the abolition of slavery
The Transcendentalist
1842
 Contrasts materialists and idealists
 Materialists founded on experience
 “data of the senses”
 Idealists founded on consciousness
 “senses give us representations of things, but what
are the things themselves, they cannot tell”
 Outlines the main characteristics and beliefs of
New England Transcendentalists
The Transcendentalist
 There is no pure Transcendentalist
 Solitude encourages alignment with nature
 “With this passion for what is great and extraordinary, it
cannot be wondered at, that they are repelled by
vulgarity and frivolity in people.”
 A materialist can be easily convinced of the
magnitude of nature with simple questions
about his environment
Self-Reliance
1841
 Compilation of many different ideas from
previous lectures and sermons
 Follows 3 major arguments:
1. Self-contained genius
2. Disapproval of the world
3. Value of self-worth
“Trust thyself”
Self-Reliance
 Disdain for conformity
 “A foolish consistency in the hobgoblin of little minds,
adored by little statesmen and philosophers and divines.”
 If one becomes a self-reliant individual, they
can achieve their highest potential
 Critics of Emerson:
 This work is not a celebration of nature, but an
example of our apprehension living within the
world2
2. Boudreau, Kristin. "'The Woman's Flesh of Me': Rebecca Harding Davis's Response to
Self-Reliance." American Transcendental Quarterly n.s 6.2 (June 1992)
Nature
1836
 Foundation for all of Emerson’s
future development of American
Transcendentalism
 Inspired by a trip to the Muséum
National d’Histoire Naturelle in
Paris
 Fully explains his passion for
nature and the problem with
humanity
 Believes that we do not fully
understand or accept the
Nature
“ [Nature] arms and equips an animal to find its
place and living in the earth, and, at the same
time, she arms and equips another animal to
destroy it.”
 Nature should be the jumping off point for all
historical, theological, philosophical thought
 The Bible is not and cannot be an authority on our
morality and humanity because it is only a
secondhand account
Legacy of Emerson
 Fully developed American
Transcendentalist
characteristics and thought
 Influenced other major writers
such as Walt Whitman and
Henry David Thoreau
 Staunch abolitionist leaving an
intellectual mark on anti-
slavery writing
 Writings are considered major
documents of American
literature, philosophy, and
religion still today

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Rhinehart emerson power point presentation

  • 1. TRANSCENDENTALISM IN THE WORKS OF RALPH WALDO EMERSON Andrew Rhinehart  English 1102
  • 2. Transcendentalism Defined  American literary, philosophical, and political movement during the 19th century  Centered around Ralph Waldo Emerson  3 main themes in transcendentalist thought1:  Response to Unitarianism  Search for faith  Aversion to commercialism 1. Miller, Perry. The Transcendentalists. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard UP, 195
  • 3. Ralph Waldo Emerson Biography  Born in 1803 in Boston, Massachusetts  Became a Unitarian pastor after graduating from the Harvard School of Divinity  Death of his wife, Ellen Tucker, in 1831 exacerbated his crisis of faith  Resigned from the clergy and traveled to Europe  Strong advocate for the abolition of slavery
  • 4. The Transcendentalist 1842  Contrasts materialists and idealists  Materialists founded on experience  “data of the senses”  Idealists founded on consciousness  “senses give us representations of things, but what are the things themselves, they cannot tell”  Outlines the main characteristics and beliefs of New England Transcendentalists
  • 5. The Transcendentalist  There is no pure Transcendentalist  Solitude encourages alignment with nature  “With this passion for what is great and extraordinary, it cannot be wondered at, that they are repelled by vulgarity and frivolity in people.”  A materialist can be easily convinced of the magnitude of nature with simple questions about his environment
  • 6. Self-Reliance 1841  Compilation of many different ideas from previous lectures and sermons  Follows 3 major arguments: 1. Self-contained genius 2. Disapproval of the world 3. Value of self-worth “Trust thyself”
  • 7. Self-Reliance  Disdain for conformity  “A foolish consistency in the hobgoblin of little minds, adored by little statesmen and philosophers and divines.”  If one becomes a self-reliant individual, they can achieve their highest potential  Critics of Emerson:  This work is not a celebration of nature, but an example of our apprehension living within the world2 2. Boudreau, Kristin. "'The Woman's Flesh of Me': Rebecca Harding Davis's Response to Self-Reliance." American Transcendental Quarterly n.s 6.2 (June 1992)
  • 8. Nature 1836  Foundation for all of Emerson’s future development of American Transcendentalism  Inspired by a trip to the Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle in Paris  Fully explains his passion for nature and the problem with humanity  Believes that we do not fully understand or accept the
  • 9. Nature “ [Nature] arms and equips an animal to find its place and living in the earth, and, at the same time, she arms and equips another animal to destroy it.”  Nature should be the jumping off point for all historical, theological, philosophical thought  The Bible is not and cannot be an authority on our morality and humanity because it is only a secondhand account
  • 10. Legacy of Emerson  Fully developed American Transcendentalist characteristics and thought  Influenced other major writers such as Walt Whitman and Henry David Thoreau  Staunch abolitionist leaving an intellectual mark on anti- slavery writing  Writings are considered major documents of American literature, philosophy, and religion still today