Transcendentalists believed in individuality and relying on yourself. They also believed that life should be simple. Transcendentalism consisted of self-reliance, confidence, importance of nature, nonconformity, and free thought. It was a simple philosophy of life.
My philosophy in life is that people should always have a positive attitude no matter the situation. I always look at the positive side of things even when there seems to be none. Positivity allows me to see the world in a better perspective and achieve much more than I would if I had a negative outlook on things. Positivity also gives me an extra push to achieve my goals.
Positivity can closely compare to self-reliance. Because not everyone is going to look at the world in a positive note, you have to rely upon yourself to block out the negativity. Relying on someone else may cause a negative light to dull your positive outlook on things. It is better to trust yourself and support others along the way. In The Great Debaters, the professor had to rely strictly on his own knowledge to get the coach out of jail. If he had relied on the officer’s knowledge, he would have not succeeded and the debate team’s dreams would have been crushed.
To be self reliant, confidence is necessary. Relying on your would tend to be hard if you lacked the necessary confidence. Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “Trust
…show more content…
Thinking outside of the box allows for new and creative ideas which can lead to a better lifestyle. Henry David Thoreau uses free thought in a way which supports my personal philosophy. He says “Love your life poor as it is. You may perhaps have some pleasant, thrilling, glorious hours, even in a poorhouse,” A person in a poorhouse is clearly not focused on the positive, but focusing on a way to get out of the situation they are in. For a person to think this, they are showing both free thought and a positive
First off, one of the defining differences between the transcendentalist life and the life lived today are feelings towards self-reliance. Transcendentalists strongly believed that all people are unique and have the power to accomplish anything. Walden by Thoreau is a great example of this value. According to Walden, “I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived’ (Thoreau #). Self-reliance as a trait is defined by confidence in oneself and ability. That excerpt exemplifies
Transcendentalism to some is may just be a long, lengthy word coined two hundred years ago that is not used today, but to other people, people like Chris McCandless, it is a way of life. They use these qualities to shape their life and strive hard to follow them. Chris McCandless was so focused on embodying the qualities of transcendentalism that he failed to see how much danger he was putting himself in. He had little to no common sense as shown by Westerberg. “But there were gaps in his thinking. I remember once I went over to the house, walked into the kitchen, and noticed a god-awful stink. I mean it smelled nasty in there. I opened the microwave, and the bottom of it was filled with rancid grease. Alex had been using it to cook chicken, and it never occurred to him that the grease had to drain somewhere. It wasn’t that he was too lazy to clean it up- Alex always kept things real neat and orderly- it was just that he hadn’t noticed the grease” (Krakauer 45). McCandless embodied the values of transcendentalism by believing in living closer to nature, believing in the dignity of manual labor, and being self reliant.
Transcendentalist writing had to do with the human sprit and its connection to nature. Transcendentalist thinkers believed that all things that occurred in nature were supposed to happen. For example, if there were forest fire that happened naturally, it would be looked at as a good thing because the ground gets nutrients. An anti-transcendentalist would see forest-fires as an act of destruction.
In Jon Krakauer’s Into the Wild, Christopher McCandless gives up all his material possessions to seek fulfillment in the Alaskan Wilderness. In doing this, Chris is able to escape from his parents and live the life of many transcendentalists that he’s read about. As John Muir once said, “The mountains are calling and I must go.” Like John Muir, Chris has developed such a profound love for nature that he is called into the wild by it. Ultimately, Chris’s life decisions are a fascinating paradox that make him both a transcendentalist hero and a fool.
Transcendentalism is based on the belief that institutions in the society corrupt an individual’s purity. Transcendentalists believe that people are at their best when they are truly independent and self-reliant. They also believe that from independence and self-reliance, a true community is formed. Even though Transcendentalism is not recognized, it still exists in the modern society. Though not clearly outspoken as in Emerson and Thoreau’s times, many people in today’s society still have transcendental beliefs. Transcendental ideals are found in songs, films, books and other works such as media and advertisements. One example is the song “Get up, Stand up,” by Bob Marley, it is found to be influenced and has inspiration of transcendental elements such as Solitude (individuality), self-reliance, non-conformism (anti-institution), anti-materialism, nature and spirituality.
Transcendentalism A whole month of being nice. From the start, I didn't think it was even humanly possible. Although I always try my hardest to be pleasant, I'm sarcastically witty by nature. This project, no matter how inspirational and uplifting it could be, would decidedly be no walk in the park. Nevertheless, I decided to persevere.
Before I started cheering, both of my parents never knew how much goes into being a cheerleader. Though soccer was the sport I grew up playing, I ended up quitting to try out for cheerleading in seventh grade. I made the squad that year and I immediately became attached to cheerleading, though my parents did not know how to react exactly. Of course they were happy for me since it was something that I wanted to do, but it was not soccer. My dad did not consider cheerleading to be a sport in the beginning, claiming that “there is no team quality to cheering.” It was safe to say that he did not necessarily like that I quit soccer to take up cheering since he did not consider cheerleading to be a real sport. I have learned that going against tradition and conformity is difficult, but is worth it in the end.
Ralph Waldo Emerson might have been Truman a standout amongst our incredible geniuses despite the fact that he. Might have a short history. In any case likewise Emerson once said himself. “Great geniuses have the most brief biographies.” Emerson might have been likewise a significant. Pioneers for “the philosophical development for Transcendentalism”. Transcendentalism might have been faith for a higher actuality over that found ordinary an aggregation. That a mankind 's camwood accomplish. Anecdotal data Emerson might have been destined around May 25, 1803 done Boston, Massachusetts. As much adore for music, something she imparts to her father passed on at he might have been youthful and as much mothball. Might have been exited with him and as much four different siblings. Toward those
These transcendentalists all had different opinions on the different things in life, but they believed in the philosophy of transcendentalism. According to Webster’s Dictionary, transcend means to go further than, or to go past. This would give transcendentalism the definition of an idea beyond other people’s ideas, or even possibly beyond this earth. The idea of transcendentalism is definitel...
Transcendentalism is a social, religious, and literary movement: a philosophy. Combining elements from the romantic period with eastern philosophical beliefs, it sought to fight against rationalism and conformism by inspiring individuals to look into their inner selves and embrace their own beliefs. One of the spearheads leading this movement was Ralph Waldo Emerson: an American writer and philosopher who sought to teach others what he himself had found. Transcendalists, such as Emerson, viewed society as a catalyst for downfall and instead believed that humans were inherently good and pure; embracing our inner feelings and emotions and ignoring expectations and conformity are essential to achieve happiness and fulfillment. Such ideas can
Transcendentalism was a religious movement that started in the late 1820s and 1830s. The main focus of transcendentalism was the perfection and goodness of a human being, nature, and the universe; it was also thought independence brought about the best in people. It was presumed that society was the cause of the corruption of purity in a person. Anti- Transcendentalism was a more realistic view of the world. They thought man was capable of evil as well as easily being deceived and their proneness to sin and self-destruction. Anti- Transcendentalists believed that making decisions solely on logic will create a negative effect in actions and thoughts.
Transcendentalism is the way in which people observe the world through a more naturalistic and philosophical viewpoint. Transcendentalists place emphasis on a spiritual connection to the world based on principles such as free thought, nonconformity, self-reliance, confidence, and the importance of nature as the gateways to individualism. Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau were central transcendentalists who were influential in disseminating the concept of the influence our corrupt society has on the purity of the individual. Transcendentalism influenced the way people thought of the world and their own individuality in a society filled with conformists and where individualism was scorned upon. Our society is filled with people that struggle to fit in and conform to the majority.
I do not think transcendentalism was a religion. It seemed more like a new philosophical way of thinking disguised so that Ralph Waldo Emerson could voice his displeasure in the Mexican-American War and slavery. Apart from that, it was a new way of thinking regarding people and their individualism. It was a movement against the mass democracy in America by “arguing for greater individualism against conformity” A French aristocrat called it “tyranny of the majority” which went along with another transcendentalist. It proves that it is not a religion because it talks too much about politics and how a too large majority could potentially “overpower the will of individuals”. Religion is more of a set of rules to follow and an otherworldly over powerful figure of which to pray to and show their dedication to
People of today think that self-reliance has gone too far, that maybe we ask too much. Yet some people can’t live up to that expectation, leaving them asking for help, and that's okay. Being self-reliant isn’t about just being able to speak your mind, being able to voice your opinion, it’s about being able to do things all on your own. Ralph Waldo Emerson, when first writing about self-reliance was all about believing in yourself and that your thoughts were worth being told and to be heard by others. Later Benjamin Anastas wrote his own paper stating how self-reliance had been manipulated over time and corrupted to others’ views, making Emerson’s point that people should do what they think is right invalid.
The thing the stands in the way of people trusting themselves is the thought of what other people might think of their choices, or the second guessing that is forced upon them because of the pressure of society. The thought of doing something different than what is expected