Exploring Transcendentalism Through Four Authors

371 Words1 Page

Transcendentalism has been a very vital topic in the stories we have read this year. I've learned that transcendentalism sort of means to stand up for what you believe in. We've read many pieces from the authors: Emerson, Thoreau, Krakauer, and Donovan. These four transcendentalists all have similar qualities expressed in their pieces. Michael Donovan, a transcendentalist, wrote a poem titled "It's all on me." This poem gives a mediocre piece of mind on what transcendentalism really is. In the poem he states, "Rise up" this quote shows to stand up for you believe in, in other words, rise up. This idea is also shared by Henry David Thoreau in his piece titled, "Civil Disobedience." In this piece written by Thoreau, he states, "Let every man

Show More
Related

  • Civil Disobedience In The Civil Divergent, By Henry David Thoreau

    1024 Words  | 3 Pages

    Throughout a series of books, and now movies known as Divergent they hit a lot of points as to what is believed as a “good society”. In the series, Divergent all must conform and fall into a certain category Dauntless, Abnegation, Erudite, Candor, or Amity . If one fails to do so, and falls into all of the categories they are known as “Divergent," and must be killed for failing to conform to traditional society standards and rules. This relates to Civil Disobedience by Henry David Thoreau, because he talks about humans not needing a form of structure set by a hierarchy, such as a government. A good society according to Thoreau, is one with little to no government involvement, one that respects laws to a certain extent, and one that follows

    Read More

  • Chris Mccandless Transcendentalism Essay

    1023 Words  | 3 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • The Philosophies of Transcendentalism

    372 Words  | 1 Pages

    In this essay, I will compare the philosophies of transcendentalism and anti-transcendentalism through the writings of Thoreau and Emerson vs. Melville. In Thoreau’s excerpt of “Walden”, he tested the transcendentalist philosophy through experience. Emerson’s transcendental writing style is displayed in “Nature”. In Melville’s excerpt of Moby Dick, he exhibits anti-transcendentalism in his work.

    Read More

  • Thoreau’s Act of Civil Disobedience

    522 Words  | 2 Pages

    Thoreau was once sent to jail for refusing to pay his taxes and I support this episode of civil disobedience as justified. Thoreau did not pay his taxes because he objected the use of the revenue to finance the Mexican War and enforcement of slavery laws. He did not request for his money to be used for the enforcement of slavery laws, therefore felt he had the right to protest and act out civil disobedience. Paul Harris defines civil disobedience as "an illegal, public, nonviolent, conscientiously motivated act of protest, done by someone who accepts the legitimacy of the legal and political systems and who submits to arrest and punishment" (2). Before I supported his civil disobedience, I opted to see if it was justified.

    Read More

  • Transcendentalism Essay

    1717 Words  | 4 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Into The Wild Transcendentalism Essay

    768 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Transcendentalist ideas that come from philosophers, artists, and religious thinkers such as Ralph Waldo Emerson play a role in shaping the way people think and behave in modern society. The novel Into The Wild by Jon Krakauer and the film based off of this book are about Chris McCandless's separation from his habitual life. This story demonstrates transcendental ideas and the impacts they have on both individuals and society as a whole. He pondered questions such as how world hunger exists and why people are so obsessed with material objects. Chris went from just graduating college, constantly surrounded by people to being completely alone in Alaska. He did not agree with the acquisitive society that we live in and he wanted an escape from his toxic family life.

    Read More

  • Transcendentalism Touches Modern Culture

    1081 Words  | 3 Pages

    What is Transcendentalism? What is Transcendentalism? Though this may sound like a new topic to you, its major tenets have been around for almost a century and many are still influencing modern life today. Transcendentalism is an American literary, political, and philosophical movement of the early nineteenth century, centered around the premises of Ralph Waldo Emerson. Along with Emerson, other important Transcendentalists including Henry David Thoreau, Emily Dickenson, and Walt Whitman also took on the unconventional morals of this movement.

    Read More

  • Emerson and Thoreau

    780 Words  | 2 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Transcendentalism

    1611 Words  | 4 Pages

    ...ed to an optimistic emphasis on individualism, self-reliance, and rejection of traditional authority” (American 1). The major players in the transcendentalist movement are Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau. They shared ideas such as self-reliance, and ideas about how there is a divine being that controls every person. They influenced many other writers and they even had an effect on the American society, then and now. Transcendentalism was a philosophy and a way of life. It will continue to be this as long as we have access to the great minds of the transcendental movement.

    Read More

  • The Importance Of Transcendentalism

    874 Words  | 2 Pages

    Even though people listen to music just to hear the melody, music is a way to express certain feelings and think about what the song means to someone personally. 20th century pop artists including Dido, Louis Armstrong, and Garth Brooks reveal transcendentalist values of the 19th century Literary Movement through self-reliance, deliberate living, and importance of nature.

    Read More

  • Civil Disobedience: Henry David Thoreau

    781 Words  | 2 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Henry David Thoreau's Influences In The Antebellum Period

    989 Words  | 2 Pages

    Thoreau wrote, “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.” The words transformed people’s lives to think more of the why in life and live with a purpose not just do what they are told, which was a driving idea within the Transcendentalist movements. Transcendentalist were hard to define, but perhaps one of the fathers of transcendentalism Ralph Waldo Emerson defines it most gracefully in a speech he gave, “The Transcendentalist adopts the whole connection of spiritual doctrine, He believes in miracle, in the perpetual openness of the human mind to new influx of light and power: he believes in inspiration, and in ecstasy”. As Emerson’s key student and self-proclaimed Transcendentalist Thoreau fulfilled these requirements to help further this movement of higher

    Read More

  • Argumentative Essay On Transcendentalism

    999 Words  | 2 Pages

    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

    Read More

  • Transcendentalism In Civil Disobedience By Henry David Thoreau

    675 Words  | 2 Pages

    life and also celebrates the truth found in nature and in personal emotion and personal

    Read More

  • Transcendental Theme Of Self-Reliance In Into The Wild, By Jon Krakauer

    498 Words  | 1 Pages

    A transcendental theme displayed in Emerson’s, Thoreau’s, Donovan’s, and Krakauer’s essays is self-reliance. Self-Reliance is the act of relying on your resources and ideas rather than using others. In Emerson’s works Nature, Self-Reliance, and Concord Hymn he provides on how you can focus on yourself in unlikely place. In Thoreau’s works Walden, and Civil Disobedience he expresses that your thoughts and ideas dictates society and law. In Donovan’s poem It's All-On-Me he writes about how at the end of the day you have to rise up and trust yourself to dictate your life. In Krakauer’s work Into the Wild the main

    Read More

More about Exploring Transcendentalism Through Four Authors

Open Document