Taking a Brief Look at Transcendentalism

602 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: How was martin luther king jr a transcendentalist

According to transcendentalism, the obligations of an individual to society are to defy unjust laws with civil disobedience. This thought of defying laws with civil disobedience became popular in the 50’s and 60’s but was theorized back in the early 19th century. The first transcendentalist to discuss this concept was Henry David Thoreau. He created the concept of fighting with peace instead of arms.
The most recent transcendentalist, Martin Luther King Jr., tells us that civil disobedience is the most right way to deal with unjust laws. “… One has a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws.” Mr. King is confessing that everyone has a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws but transcendentalism illustrates how to do so in a peaceful non-violent way that will gain the respect of others (King). Morals are the basis of responsibility and a person’s moral compass is already calibrated to the right direction of what is right and what is wrong. Consciously, “One who breaks an unjust law must do so openly, lovingly, and with the willingness to accept penalty.”(King) Willing to receive punishment for what he believed in said a lot about his character but how he responded to such punishment really exhibited that he is a transcend list and not an average Joe. MLK JR not only popularized the idea of transcendentalism but showed the American people that not all wars are won with deadly weapons.
Transcendentalism is not reserved to just the US but exists all over the world. Mahatma Gandhi, originating from India, initiated a revolution in India by forcing out the British through the practice of peaceful non-conformity. Gandhi touched those around him through his willingness to receive punishment for what he believes is morally ri...

... middle of paper ...

...K, Gandhi, and Thoreau all used civil disobedience to protest what they believed was right morally for them and for the people around them.

Works Cited

Emerson, Ralph Waldo. "from Nature." Emerson Central. Jones Johnson Lewis, n.d. Web. 27 Oct. 2013. .
Glick, Wendell, ed. "Resistance to Civil Government." The Writings of Henry D. Thoreau: Reform Papers. Princeton University Press, n.d. Web. 27 Oct. 2013. .
King, Martin Luther, Jr. "Letter From a Birmingham Jail." African Studies Center. University of Pennsylvania, n.d. Web. 27 Oct. 2013. .
"Mahatma Gandhi." 2013. The Biography Channel website. Oct 27 2013,
http://www.biography.com/people/mahatma-gandhi-9305898

Show More
Related

  • Compare And Contrast Martin Luther King And On The Duty Of Civil Disobedience

    1177 Words  | 3 Pages

    History has encountered many different individuals whom have each impacted the 21 in one way or another; two important men whom have revolted against the government in order to achieve justice are Henry David Thoreau and Martin Luther King Jr. Both men impacted numerous individuals with their powerful words, their words carried the ability to inspire both men and women to do right by their morality and not follow unjust laws. “On the Duty of Civil Disobedience” by David Henry Thoreau along with King’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail”, allow the audience to understand what it means to protest for what is moral.

    Read More

  • Comparing Letter from a Birmingham Jail and Civil Disobedience

    1558 Words  | 4 Pages

    King, Martin L. "Letter from a Birmingham Jail [King, Jr.]." Letter to Fellow Clergymen. 16

    Read More

  • Emerson And Transcendentalism Comparison

    650 Words  | 2 Pages

    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

    Read More

  • Compare And Contrast Thoreau And Civil Disobedience

    1321 Words  | 3 Pages

    Mahatma Gandhi, a prominent leader in the independence movement of India once said, “Civil disobedience becomes a sacred duty when the state becomes lawless and corrupt.”(brainyquotes.com) Gandhi states that protest and civil disobedience are necessary when the authority becomes unscrupulous. This correlates to “Declaration of Independence,” by Thomas Jefferson; “Civil Disobedience,” by Henry David Thoreau; and “Letter from a Birmingham Jail,” by Martin Luther King Jr., because all three leaders felt that civil disobedience was important to help protest against an unjust ruling. Jefferson stood up to the injustice of the king by writing the Declaration of Independence and urged others to stand up for the independence of America. Thoreau exemplified

    Read More

  • Martin Luther King's Letter from Birmingham Jail

    1225 Words  | 3 Pages

    Rottenburg, Anette. "Dr. Martin Luther King, Letter From a Birmingham Jail." Elements of Argument.. Boston: St. Martin's Press, 1991.

    Read More

  • Henry Thoreau's Civil Disobedience and Martin Luther King Jr.

    1215 Words  | 3 Pages

    He met the government “once a year--no more--in the person of its tax-gatherer; this is the only mode in which a man situated as I am necessarily meets it. ”iii In the case of Thoreau and King, their struggle could not be resolved by simple negotiation. The third step, as King calls it, is self-purification.

    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

  • Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and His Transcendental Idea

    1846 Words  | 4 Pages

    King, Martin Luther Jr. “Letter from the Birmingham jail.” Why We Can't Wait 1963: 77-100.

    Read More

  • Civil Disobedience Ethos Pathos Logos

    718 Words  | 2 Pages

    “On the Duty of Civil Disobedience” is evocative of some of the most famous writings of the Revolutionary Era. In comparison to “The Declaration of Independence”, both works include the three elements of Aristotle’s rhetorical triangle: logos, ethos, and pathos. When employed tactfully, the combination of these three components can create a very compelling argument. Thoreau’s essay elicits the idea that it is our civic duty and moral obligation to revolt when great injustices- slavery being the injustice he chose to write about- are occurring amongst us. By including factual evidence, referencing authority figures such as George Washington and

    Read More

  • Resistance to Civil Government: Henry David Thoreau

    1381 Words  | 3 Pages

    In his essay, “Resistance to Civil Government,” often times dubbed, “Civil Disobedience,” Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862) argues against abiding to one’s State, in protest to the unjust laws within its government. Among many things, Thoreau was an American author, poet, and philosopher. He was a firm believer in the idea of civil disobedience, the act of refusing to obey certain laws of a government that are felt to be unjust. He opposed the laws regarding slavery, and did not support the Mexican-American war, believing it to be a tactic by the Southerners to spread slavery to the Southwest. To show his lack of support for the American government, he refused to pay his taxes. After spending a night in jail for his tax evasion, he became inspired to write “Civil Disobedience.” In this essay, he discusses the importance of detaching one’s self from the State and the power it holds over its people, by refraining from paying taxes and putting money into the government. The idea of allowing one’s self to be arrested in order to withhold one’s own values, rather than blindly following the mandates of the government, has inspired other civil rights activists throughout history such as Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Both these men fought against unjust laws, using non-violent, yet effective, methods of protest. From these three men, we can learn the significance of detaching ourselves from the social norm; and instead, fight for our values in a non-violent way, in order to make a change in our government’s corrupt and unjust laws.

    Read More

  • Comparing Martin Luther King Jr. And Henry David Thoreau's Civil Disobedience

    865 Words  | 2 Pages

    Henry David Thoreau in his essay “Civil Disobedience” Thoreau asserts that men should react from their conscience. Thoreau believed it was the duty of a person to defy the law if his conscience says that the law is unjust. He believed this even if the law was made by a democratic action. Thoreau

    Read More

  • Transcendentalism

    1611 Words  | 4 Pages

    The word Transcendentalism, as used at the present day, has two applications. One of which is popular and indefinite, the other, philosophical and precise. In the former sense it describes man, rather than opinions, since it is freely extended to those who hold opinions, not only diverse from each other, but directly opposed. (1)

    Read More

  • Comparison of Civil Disobedience

    3701 Words  | 8 Pages

    Comparing the Civil Disobedience of Martin Luther King Jr., Henry David Thoreau, and Mohandas Gandhi

    Read More

  • Hippies and Transcendentalism

    1547 Words  | 4 Pages

    Transcendentalism is a belief that centers itself on the mutual benefit of humanity and the environment, and this idea has had reoccurring effects on societies all over the world since its prominence in the mid 1800’s. The American counter-culture movement of the 1960’s is a prime example of revived transcendentalist ideas. One group in particular, the hippies, are notorious for their advocacy for free thought, love, and peace, not to mention to their staunch resistance to war and belligerent action. The influence of transcendentalism is visible and the ideas of popular thinkers had a bigger impact than they ever expected.

    Read More

  • Civil Disobedience

    577 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the past in this country, Thoreau wrote an essay on Civil disobedience saying that people make the law and have a right to disobey unjust laws, to try and get those laws changed.

    Read More

More about Taking a Brief Look at Transcendentalism

Open Document