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Transcendentalism in the 21st century
Transcendentalism in the 21st century
Transcendentalism in the 21st century
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Bob Marley
When I think of Transcendentalism, Bob Marley just pops in my head. I feel like he fits into most of the Transcendental Concepts. Reading some of Marley’s quotes and comparing them to other Transcendentalist they share some of the same meanings. Bob Marley was a Reggae singer from St. Anna Parish. He helped introduce Reggae music to the world, was also big on a religion known as Rastafarian, it played a big part in his music. The three transcendental concepts Bob Marley fits most are nonconformity, simplified life, and importance of nature.
Nonconformity means to be yourself to be able to do something different when others are doing something they think is right, to look at things differently than others do. Nonconformity is having custom ideas and looking at things differently than some may. Being nonconformist means you won't mold to society you will look at things the way you think is right. Or like Emerson would say go away from the crowd."Nothing is at last sacred but the integrity of our own mind."-Emerson. "A minority is powerless while it conforms to the majority."-Henry David Thoreau. These are both quotes about nonconformity, Emerson’s comes straight from his “Self Reliance” essay.
I think Bob Marley fits well into nonconformity well because of his many
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The way he used nature in his everyday life and he didn't need much to keep him happy. He could let others see the world through his nonconformist ways through song. He was just happy to be living the life he was given without a worry in the world. That's why I think Bob Marley fits into the Transcendental concepts of nonconformity, simplified Life, and importance of nature. Although he started off Christian I think Rastafarian made him into the man he was. I can't imagine what kind of things he would've done if he didn't die at such an early age can
Individualism and conformity--two very commonly used terms to describe anyone in today’s time. In comparison to the article “The Sociology of Leopard Man,” written by Logan Feys, one of the most notable quotes that relates to individualism and conformity is “to be a human is to be an individual human, with individual tastes [...][and]talents [...] that are distinct from those of others. Living in society, we are under constant pressure to surrender our individuality to the will of the majority, the school, the workplace, the family, …” (Feys Par. 6). To be truthful, conformity and nonconformity are used to determine a person’s inner-being, but every person is different, and in this case people will not always agree with each other on how they should live.
Nonconformity is defined as failure or refusal to conform, as with established customs, attitudes, or ideas. A nonconformist is a person or thing that chooses not to conform to established customs or ideas. This person will bring either positive or negative change no matter what. An example of a nonconformist that brought out positive change through nonconforming is Galileo Galilei. Galileo was an Italian philosopher, mathematician, astronomer, and physicist who was mostly famous for the modernization of astronomy and his theory that the earth wasn’t the center of the universe. Even though Galileo was criticized and was called a heretic he stayed strong in what he knew was right in an act of civil disobedience.
Ralph Waldo Emerson is considered the Father of Transcendentalism because he first introduced the idea of a simplistic and intuitive way of life. He claims, “Whoso would be a man must be a nonconformist . . . Nothing is at least sacred but the integrity of your own mind” (“Self-Reliance” 392). Nonconformity is an essential part of Emerson’s definition of a transcendentalist. To be able to live a truly boundless and accomplished life, one must not fall into the daily, busy life of society. He or she must stand out and follow their intuition, even it is not considered the norm. The only way to be content is to trust one’s instinct, not be jaded by the pressures society.
The transcendentalists of America are heralded as some of the best writers in history, because they revolutionized the ways in which people think. Although Martin Luther King Jr. was not a transcendentalist, his “Letter from a Birmingham Jail” is considered to share many similar ideas to the transcendentalists and can also be considered revolutionary. In today’s American society, nonconformity and independent action are built off of the same ideals that the transcendentalists had. One such act is the protest against the Dakota Access Pipeline. According to transcendentalist ideas and modern day protesters, the main reason for independent action and nonconformity is a sense of greater purpose in the world brought about by religion.
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.
In the 1830s the Transcendental movement sprouted. Through the movement founded by Ralph Waldo Emerson, the idea emerged that there is an inherent goodness in all of us. We learned that just because everyone else has a certain philosophy, it does not mean you are required to think that way. Transcendentalism revolved around the themes of religion, politics, the environment and intuition. Even though the transcendental movement ended more than a century and a half ago, its ideals thrive within modern day society. A fantastic example of a modern day transcendentalist would be Bono, the lead vocalist for the world renowned band, U2. Throughout the years, Bono has carried on the legacy that Emerson and his fellow transcendentalists left behind. Bono and U2 demonstrate transcendentalism through the band’s religious beliefs, political beliefs/actions, environmental movements, song lyrics, and the passion through which they express themselves.
“The Road Not Taken” by Robert Frost is the best representation of transcendentalism because it shows self-reliance, conformity versus nonconformity, and the importance of nature. In the poem, the speaker makes a choice to continue their walk through the forest on the path that is barely disturbed. The speaker’s choice showed the reader that the speaker had free will and trust in their decision, which plays into the theme of self-reliance in transcendentalism. The poem also touches on the definitions of conformity and nonconformity when the speaker described the path of nonconformity as if, “no step had trodden black.” The author did not describe the path of conformity in the poem in detail, but the lack of description perfectly tied into the
...uality, nature, anti-materialism and self-reliance. His music was purposed towards encouraging people to believe in their choices and decisions rather than believing in the teachings of societal institutions. Bob Marley criticized religion is an institution which instead of uniting people ends up separating them. He also warns people not to suffer in the name of going to even and live an afterlife. Rather, they should live in heaven on earth that is, they should be happy in their lives. Bob Marley’s song corresponds to transcendentalist who believed that people should not conform to the normal life patterns. Transcendentalists, just like Bob Marley, believed that one derives happiness from what he/she believes is right no matter what people think or the consequences. When one stands up for his/her rights, he/she does not follow what has been stipulated or instructed.
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.
In the essay Self-Reliance, Emerson addresses his idea on individualism which allows for nonconformity because being a nonconformist in today's mimetic society, can construct an authentic identity. The social conformity in today’s world influences people into conformism, thus eliminating individual thoughts or beliefs. According to Christina Bianca, a creator from At Auburn University, claims that, “In today’s society...it’s become all too easy to let society tell us what to believe through the constant swarm of messages attempting to achieve communication with us.” Society, as stated by Christina Bianca, “attempts to carve beliefs into the human brain by any means possible.” For example, “if you were to log onto any form of social
Many people have theories and philosophies about life in general. There have been hundreds of thousands of books published by many different people on the ideas of people in the past and the present. Transcendentalism falls in amongst all of these ideas. There have been articles, essays, poems, and even books written about this subject. Transcendentalism has effected many people since the philosophy was first introduced. The idea was complex and hard to grasp for many commoners and therefore it was understood by few people, and some would think that the idea was not understood at all and that was part of the idea. Henry David Thoreau once stated about himself, “I should have told them at once that I was a transcendentalist. That would have been the shortest way of telling them that they would not understand my explanations” (Reuben 1).
His lyrics say alot and alot of people felt this song. The album this song was on was on his only album that made top 10 in America. This song addresses many situation for colored people. This song spoke the some people and influenced them to join movements and protests. In an article named The Bob Marley Effect: More than Just Words written by Juleen S. Burke she says “Bob Marley provides a stark contrast to the Black Power movement of the 1960’s and 1970’s in the United States.
The Dead Poet Society expresses the Transcendentalist ideas of Self-Reliance , Self-trust and Nature. Dead Poet Society is a story about a English teacher that really doesn't go along with the rules at a boarding school. Throughout the school year the teacher inspires 5 boys to have self-reliance. Mr.Keating had the boys take their english book and rip the introduction out because he didn't believe that was poetry stands for, he had his own way of teaching it.
Born February 45th. In Nine Mile, Jamaica, Bob Marley would advance to touch that hearts of many people. Although he was teased during his childhood for being of mixed race heritage, he still managed to change people lives with his leadership and activism as an adult. Bob Marley was not only a leader when it came to activism. He was also a leader for emerging music. He often communicated politics and social issues through his lyrics. Rather than conforming to the demands of the music industry, he created his own unique and authentic style of music. Bob Marley shared fundamental elements of music in his work that is now found in the music genres of today.
Marley was born into Jamaica’s poverty and it is where he developed a strong love of reggae and became a Rastafari. Reggae, evolved from another musical style called Ska in the late 1960’s, is considered the voice of the ‘oppressed’ peoples. Many reggae lyrics are politicalised and centre on themes of freedom and fighting for it. (Cooper, 2014)