Transcendentalism revisited and romantic vision of nature

R. W. Emerson :
Nature - essay
Self-Reliance - essay
Good-bye - poem
H.D.Thoreau :
Walden / Life in the Woods memoir, diary
On Civil Disobedience essay
The Period of Romanticism (the first half of the 19th century)
1.Social background: Industrial Revolution western expansion immigrants contribution political ideal of
equality and democracy the influence of European Romanticists
2. Literature: American Romanticism New England Transcendentalism
Characteristics : Romanticism on the Puritan soil emphasis on spirit, or the Oversoul a transparent eyeball
the stress of the importance of the individual as the most important element of society a fresh perception of
nature as symbolic of the spirit or God inspiration of a whole new generation of famous authors such as
Emerson, Thoreau, Hawthorne, Melville, Whitman and Dickinson.
The sources of Transcendentalism include English Romanticism (especially Coleridge and the idea of the one
Life and Wordsworths view of nature), German idealist philosophy, and Unitarianism, as well as Eastern
religions.Transcendentalism was an American attempt to produce a new philosophy that would serve a new
nation.
An expanded definition of Transcendentalism: It derives from the transcendental philosophy of Immanuel
Kant its proponents emphasized the divine in nature, the value of the individual and of human intuition, and a
spiritual reality that transcends sensory experience, while also providing a better guide for life than purely
empirical or logical reasoning. The term refers to a cluster of concepts set forth by a number of individuals
rather than a formal philosophy.

R.W. Emerson :
He placed few limits on the powers of the new nation or on the remarkable individuals who contributed to its
democracy. Self-Reliance was not merely the title of one of his most influential essays it was also a concept
that summed up an entire philosophy of life. Just as each soul participated in the soul of the universe, so each
American had a right to participate in the wider body politic. In addition, the Emersonian idea of an Over-Soul,
a vaguely monotheistic deity with connections to many earlier ideas about God, allowed for a wide range
of believers, and even nonbelievers, to participate in this new version of religious free thinking. Emersons
ideas summed up young Americas emphasis on the liberty of each individual and the role of all those
individuals in the formation of the state. He also supports the American education, encouraging the American
youth of his day to trust their own minds and intuition, to develop their personalities profoundly

1. Nature :

In "Nature", Emerson lays out and attempts to solve an abstract problem: that humans do not fully accept
natures beauty. He writes that people are distracted by the demands of the world, whereas nature gives but
humans fail to reciprocate. The essay consists of eight sections: Nature, Commodity, Beauty, Language,
Discipline, Idealism, Spirit and Prospects. Each section takes a different perspective on the relationship
between humans and nature.In the essay Emerson explains that to experience the wholeness with nature for
which we are naturally suited, we must be separate from the flaws and distractions imposed on us by society.
Emerson defines a spiritual relationship. In nature a person finds its spirit and accepts it as the Universal Being.
He writes: "Nature is not fixed but fluid to a pure spirit, nature is everything."

Ideas :

Any answer we may be looking for is intrinsic to our dilemmas

Nothing in human existence is meaningless

Kant is evoked

2 basic components of the universe : Nature/Not Me, and the Soul/Me. Me represents the Self, the Soul, the
Spirit while Not Me encompasses Nature,Art,Matter,ones own physical body

Similarities beween Nature and Section 6 of Song of Myself :

-

Both must be flag of my disposition = an allegoric projection of the poetic self

Both poets experience a sort of mystic trance

Setting : woods- only here one can make poetic self-expression

2. Self- Reliance :
Essay
Themes :
- Nonconformity : the need for each individual to avoid conformity and false consistency, and follow their
own instincts and ideas, to be true to themselves
-

Spirituality : truth is within ones self

plea for responsibility and dignity represent his ars poetica

plea for lucidity, independence of mind, the risk to be different

fascination for rethinking,reconsidering, redefining = self improvement/ self-reliance

reform is a process that has to start from within each and every individual a chalenge of ones limits

Life is so much more than mere survival

Emerson criticizes hypocrisy, bigotry, pettiness, cowardice ( Religion to him was no refuge for such things)

Self- awareness : both a duty and a priviledge to a well-educated Man-thinking

3. Good- bye :

Poem consisting of 4 stanzas (strofe) symmetry prevailing

The line Good-bye, proud world! Im going home. meaning : the polarity between proud
world and the poets solitary self exposes the shallowness of the worlds gaudy mask

Emersons lyrical voice confirms his voice in the essays --- the same plea for genuineness

Society values superficial qualities, wealth

The hybris animating this world can only be left all behind by a self-reliant poet, ready for a decisive
double encounter with both his conscience and God himself : in other words, with what he calls The
Over-Soul

The much expected back home means leaving a proud world of foolish passions and ambitions
for a transcendence to the Over-Soul

The blackbird appears as a symbol of American Poetry The blackbirds roundelay

contemplated by American poets like Dickinson,Emerson, Stevens, instead of the British
nightingale. Any creature,no matter how humble, deserves the privileged rank of a poetic object. The
blackbird- full of vitality,hope,joy of living, easily ignorable to an absent-minded spectator to Nature

Emerson teaches us the good lesson of regarding the world with no illusions, but likewise with
grateful and tender lucidity

H.D. Thoreau :

1. Walden / Life in the woods :

Memoir, more like a diary

Reflection upon simple living in natural surroundings.The work is part personal declaration of
independence, social experiment, voyage of spiritual discovery, satire, and (to some degree) manual for
self-reliance

By immersing himself in nature, Thoreau hoped to gain a more objective understanding of society
through personal introspection. Simple living and self-sufficiency were Thoreau's other goals, and the
whole project was inspired by transcendentalist philosophy, a central theme of the American
Romantic Period.

Walden Pond- Emersons property

Part memoir and part spiritual quest, Walden opens with the announcement that Thoreau spent two
years at Walden Pond living a simple life without support of any kind. Readers are reminded that at the
time of publication, Thoreau is back to living among the civilized again. The book is separated into
specific chapters that each focus on specific themes :

Economy

Where I Lived, and What I Lived for : recollects thoughts of places he stayed at before selecting Walden
Pond

Reading: Thoreau discusses the benefits of classical literature

Sounds: Thoreau encourages the reader to be forever on the alert and looking always at what is to be
seen.

Visitors: Thoreau talks about how he enjoys companionship (despite his love for solitude) and always leaves
three chairs ready for visitors

Solitude: Thoreau reflects on the feeling of solitude

The Bean-Field: Reflection on Thoreau's planting and his enjoyment of this new job/hobby

The Ponds: In autumn, Thoreau discusses the countryside and writes down his observations about the
geography

The Pond in Winter: Thoreau describes Walden Pond as it appears during the winter

Spring

Conclusion - criticizes conformity. By disobeying it, men may find happiness and self-fulfillment.

2. On Civil Disobedience :

Essay arguing that individuals should not permit governments to overrule or atrophy
their consciences.Thoreau was motivated in part by his disgust with slavery and the Mexican
American War (1846-1848)

Plea for non-violence, inspiring thinkers such as Gandhi, Martin Luther King

Doubts the virtues conventionally attributed to democracy

Stands against American imperialism, slavery he has a romantic belief that such crises could be
solved by peaceful means

He stands as an exemplary model ( hes against the poll-tax, so he refuses to pay it )

Real freedom can only be interior freedom. True freedom means self-reliance

Because he refuses to pay the poll-tax, after his 2 years experiment ( Walden), in what he called
living deliberately in Walden Pound, he was convicted, but he was set free after one night in jail,
because his tax was paid by someone from his family

He has a basic instinct of disobedience

The individual separates from the majority = the unpredictable individual represents a problem for
any government, while the majority is cowardly,submissive obeying the rules iposed by the
government

The final message is that the self will oppose the blunt massive other which is represented here by
the law