Self-Reliance Rhetorical Analysis

1. The mode of discourse Emerson uses in “Self-Reliance” is argument. In his argument he logically presents a variety of evidence to prove the main purpose of the essay. Emerson’s purpose of this essay is to present the core ideas of Transcendentalism and motivate the reader to “trust thyself.” This idea is repeated throughout the essay in a variety of ways. For example, Emerson states that a person’s belief in his or her personal truths is the source of genius. To the reader it is obvious that Emerson is confident in his beliefs and is not concerned what others may think. Emerson’s hope is that he can convince the audience to change its view and become self-reliant as well.

2. In his essay Emerson uses persuasive rhetoric and other

literary devices to present his theme of individuality. Throughout the work he uses loaded words and persuasive rhetoric. Statements like; “Trust thyself: every heart vibrates to that iron string” are a direct call to the reader to believe in Emerson’s ideas. He uses parallelism throughout the essay. The first example is in the beginning of the essay when he writes “To believe your own thought, to believe that what is true for you in your private heart, is true for all men – that is genius.” Finally he uses metaphors to engage the reader. “A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds, adored by little statesmen and philosophers and divines.” This means that just because society thinks that a person should always be consistent in thought and action does not mean that it is right. No matter what, a person should always think for his or herself, even if that results in a change of opinion.

3. In his essay Emerson tries to persuade the reader to agree with his argument for self-reliance through his use of diction and syntax. Emerson makes many analogies and alludes to many historical people within the essay. For example he compares society to a joint stock company. Emerson says that like a joint stock company, everyone in society conforms and follows the leader. To be self-reliant you need to be the opposite of this and follow your own desire. He also alludes to historical figures like Jesus, Luther, Galileo, and Newton when he says “Is it so bad to be misunderstood?” This means that like these figures whose ideas were considered controversial during their time, to be self-reliant will eventually be proven correct.

4. “There is a time in every man’s education when he arrives at the conviction that envy is ignorance; that imitation is suicide…”
I find this aphorism (envy is ignorance – imitation is suicide) very striking for three reasons. The first reason is because unlike a lot of the language contained within the essay, this sentence is very clear and direct. Second, the main point of the line is one of the major themes of transcendentalism. Emerson is saying that above all else, a person must be true to him or herself. For a person to be envious of others is wasteful because envy forces a person to ignore everything he or she has to offer the world. To imitate another person essentially kills a person’s individuality and all that makes him or her unique. The final reason I find this line to be striking is in its use of strong language. Words like “ignorance” and “suicide” are powerful words that really awaken the reader and grabs the audience’s attention.