An influential literary movement in the nineteenth century, transcendentalism placed an emphasis on the wonder of nature and its deep connection to the divine. As the two most prominent figures in the transcendentalist movement, Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau whole-heartedly embraced these principles. In their essays “Self-Reliance” and “Civil Disobedience”, Emerson and Thoreau, respectively, argue for individuality and personal expression in different manners. In “Self-Reliance”, Emerson calls for individuals to speak their minds and resist societal conformity, while in “Civil Disobedience” Thoreau urged Americans to publicly state their opinions in order to improve their own government. Both Thoreau and Emerson argue that asserting one’s opinions is crucial to attaining a better society. Emerson decries the danger of societal conformity and challenges the reader to “speak what you think now in hard words” in order to remedy it (Emerson 367). Likewise, Thoreau speculates that if “every man make known what kind of government would command his respect” it would be “one step toward obtaining it” (Thoreau 381). With these remarkably similar statements, both transcendentalists appeal to the reader’s patriotism by using language evocative of the agitated and outraged colonial Americans who demanded the people’s voice be heard in government. Although published roughly a half century later, “Self-Reliance” and “Civil Disobedience” mirror the sentiments of famous Revolution-era leaders such as Thomas Paine and Patrick Henry. Additionally, Emerson and Thoreau both warn the reader of the dangers when individuality is marginalized. Emerson views society as a “conspiracy against the manhood of every one of... ... middle of paper ... ...the law where every individual follows his own set of rules (Thoreau 381). Although assuredly in favor of individuality, Thoreau recognizes that a democracy requires public consensus and popular support. While Emerson and Thoreau certainly have difference of opinions, they recognize the need for public discussion and discourse. Emerson declares “a foolish consistency” to be “the hobgoblin of little minds” (Emerson 367). This is shown in their essays “Self-Reliance” and “Civil Disobedience” in which they support individuality and personal expression. Despite their contrasting views of society and government, the two most prominent transcendentalists in literary history share a passionate belief in the necessity that every American must exercise their constitutional rights and make known their views even and especially if it challenges the status quo.
A transcendentalist whom strongly urged passive, non-violent resistance to the government’s policies to which an individual is morally opposed wrote his ideas in his essay,“On the Duty of Civil Disobedience” in the year 1849. Thoreau’s transcendentalist belief is seen in his text continuously, “In most cases there is no free exercise whatever of the judgment or of the moral sense; but they put themselves on a level with wood and earth and stones; and wooden men can perhaps be manufactured that will serve the purpose as well. Such command no more respect than men of straw or a lump of dirt. They have the same sort of worth only as horses and dogs”(Thoreau 4). As a white male who was given the right to vote, Thoreau’s writing is more direct and
Two men, similar in their transcendentalist beliefs and yet so different in their methods of expressing their beliefs on handling the issues of society, were major voices in the anti-slavery movement. While their focuses are more on the subjects of morality and individual choice, they still reflect on how slavery should be addressed by the American people, American referring to the free whites who actually make the decisions. Ralph Waldo Emerson is highly regarded for his views on Transcendentalism during what some of deemed the “American Renaissance.” Emerson establishes his place in history by expressing his liberal agenda through his beliefs that truth is based on intuition and law should be based on individual reflection. He believes that the only way one could truly learn about life is by ignoring knowledge from outside sources and relying on one’s internal voice; he incorporates this belief into the convincing rhetoric of “Last of the Anti-Slavery Lectures.” While Emerson asserts his views on self reliance, he is really trying to sway the views of his audience. This makes us ask the question: Is he really right, or is he only convincing us that he is right? Henry David Thoreau, however, serves as both a complement and a foil for Emerson; while he also expresses his transcendental beliefs, he converges on a split between these beliefs and reason. He articulates his ideas in “Slavery in Massachusetts,” a piece that illustrates how Thoreau separates himself from his own state because of his “contempt for her courts” (1991). While some would argue that Thoreau is somewhat of a better writer than Emerson, it cannot be denied that one cannot reach...
Transcendentalists Thoreau and Emerson conveyed strong, specific viewpoints on the world through their writing. The transcendentalist ideals differ vastly with the lives lived by most of the modern world today. Firstly, the two differ on views of self-reliance. Secondly, they have different outlooks on the government and organized groups. Lastly, transcendentalist and modern American views vary by the way they view nature. These differences between transcendentalism and life today are essential in understanding life then, as well as life now.
Jacobus, Lee A. Henry David Thoreau. "Civil Disobedience." A World Of Ideas: essential readings for college writers. Bedford/St. Martin's, 2002. 141-167
His ideas of taking action against government corruption instead of just shyly agreeing or sinking into the shadows of the societal majority is a universal message that can apply to anyone at anytime. Like his revolutionary predecessors, Thoreau establishes a compelling argument that resonates in the hearts of man and pushes them to rise up. America is founded upon the ideals of democracy and being governed by the people. Thoreau, almost a century after America gained its independence, reestablishes these importance of these principles in our society through his essay. He is not only a Transcendentalist, but also a
Rather, he should always protest for his autonomy. Thoreau expands on this subject in Civil Disobedience. After expressing his desires for a small government, he questions the idea of government itself: “Must the citizen ever for a moment...resign his conscience to the legislator?...[W]e should be men first, and subjects afterwards” (Civil Disobedience 171). Placing the individual over the government, Thoreau shows his passion for the self. That person’s actions may go awry, but, at least, the person still has the right to learn from his or her wrongs. Thoreau likens a meaningful existence with unyielding trust in a person’s inner voice. Without nurturing this voice, an individual loses his or her personhood. Such unwavering loyalty to the self best characterizes the transcendental ideal life, where one only needs to follow intuition to be
Both Emerson and Thoreau’s still have something to teach us today. The ideas that they share in “Self-Reliance” and “Life without Principle” are still relevant in today’s world. When students are taught about these writers they feel as if it’s a waste of time, but in reality if they paid close attention they would understand that it is for their benefit.
“Civil Disobedience,” written by Henry David Thoreau – originally published as “Resistance to Civil Government” in Aesthetic Papers (1849) and motivated by slavery and the Mexican-American War – discusses the hold government has on individuals in a society and the potential risks, as well as solutions, to overcoming the majority consciousness. Thoreau opens his essay with words he believes every government should live by: “That government is best which governs least.” Thoreau expresses that traditional government is often an inhibitor to the fluidity of justice and the desires of the majority, as well as the minority. As detailed, the American people have established a desire for some complicated concept to derive their government in order
In Emerson’s Self-Reliance, he communicates that when a man believes in his own conscience and heart, he is genius. The idea of not conforming to society, yet sticking to personal ideas and practices, was popular among transcendentalists, and influenced heavily by Emerson and Thoreau. Due to those ideas, transcendentalists were and still are stereotyped as “hippies.” However, unlike the hippies of the 1960s, these people did not simply reject society; instead, they formulated ways to influence the nation into a greater and alternative culture. Doing this exact thing is becoming more popular among today’s world, and Emerson and Thoreau’s standing impact on free thinkers could be part of the cause. Those who choose to believe in themselves and rely on their own spirit could be considered the transcendentalists of today.
Henry David Thoreau was a poet, social philosopher, and educator in the early to mid- 1800s (Hampton). He graduated from Harvard University in 1837 and, upon his return to his hometown of Concord, Massachusetts, befriended Ralph Waldo Emerson, also a philosopher and poet (Hampton, “Ralph Waldo Emerson”). Emerson was also the leader of the Transcendentalist movement which was based on the idea that people should lead by example -- social reform begins with the individual, not the government -- and that the movement should be peaceful (Woodlief, Ruehl). Thoreau agreed with this approach until the United States invaded Mexico in May, 1846 (Brown, Witherell). Opposed to slavery, Thoreau saw the invasion of Mexico as an attempt by the government to extend slavery westward. In his essay “On the Duty of Civil Disobedience,” published in 1849 with the original title, “Resistance to Civil Government,” Thoreau protests against the government and states that is a man’s duty to rise up against the government when the government commits a wrong (Thoreau). In his writings, Thoreau uses the three rhetorical approaches of Pathos, Ethos, and Logos in his attempts to persuade his readers to his point of view (Heinrichs).
Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862) was a philosopher and writer who is well known for his criticism of the American government during the time. During Thoreau’s life, there were two major issues being debated in the United States: slavery and the Mexican-American War. Both issues greatly influenced his essay, as he actually practiced civil disobedience in his own life by refusing to pay taxes in protest of the Mexican War. He states that the government should be based on conscience and that citizens should refuse to follow the law and has the duty not to participate and stay as a member of an unjust institution like the government. I argue that the notion of individualism and skepticism toward government is essential in the basis of many important reform movements in the modern society.
Thoreau regards civil disobedience as duty of his fellow countrymen in order for them to be moral, upstanding Americans. Particularly in the...
Martin Luther King and Henry David Thoreau each write exemplary persuasive essays that depict social injustice and discuss civil disobedience, which is the refusal to comply with the law in order to prove a point. In his “Letter from a Birmingham Jail,” King speaks to a specific audience: the African Americans, and discusses why he feels they should bring an end to segregation. Thoreau on the other hand, in “Civil Disobedience,” speaks to a broader, non-addressed audience as he largely expresses his feelings towards what he feels is an unjust government. Both essays however, focus on the mutual topics of morality and justice and use these topics to inform and motivate their audience to, at times, defy the government in order to establish the necessary justice.
“Government is best which governs least.” This single quote is the most important line of the essay, and defines why this essay is a classic.“Civil Disobedience,” by Henry David Thoreau, is Thoreau’s viewpoint on the issues that faced the nation as a whole including the size of the government, on-going wars, and human rights. These problems though are not just facing the nation during his lifetime, but also our life. Thoreau is considered a classic author due to his work in the transcendentalist movement, and his words in “Civil Disobedience” through the style of the essay and the themes of individualism along with calls for a smaller government.
Ralph Waldo Emerson’s “Self-Reliance” was written in 1841 in New England during the Transcendentalist Movement, which was a revolt against the “Age of Reason” and the beginning of Romanticism. Emerson’s essay is about Transcendentalism, the belief that every human has his own way of thinking and personal inborn knowledge to build his opinion, independent from the common beliefs of the community and he should believe in and express his opinion to be successful. Emerson supports the idea of Transcendentalism by urging his readers to trust their own ideas, beliefs and common sense, to listen to and to trust their inner voice and to hold the popular opinion back from influencing their way of thinking, if they want to be successful. He tells them to be proud of their own opinion and not to be shy to express it.