The Sublime: Ralph Waldo Emerson

Humanity seems to sanctify nature because it exists in a pure form that is separated from the technological world of modern civilization. Nature is often seen as a haven for peace and for organic beauty. It is consecrated as being simply present before humanities introduction to nature as well as designated to exist after humanity’s demise. This transcendent quality of nature that extends over the reach of humanity invokes a sense of spirituality, known as the sublime, that connects humanity to nature without the influence of the corrupt material world found in civilization. The sublime is so excellent that it inspires awe in those who experience it. The problem lies in the experience of pure sublimity as it is merely a tease on the juxtaposition

Emerson believes that reality is nothing but a manifestation of our soul’s desire through our mind’s eye. He argued that, through self-reliance, we should play an active role in defining our external environment as a reflection of our internal state. Emerson’s ideas of self-reliance urges individuals to define their relationship between society and nature on the basis of their internal values. This leads to questioning if one’s values do not idealize nature if they can still find the sublime without it as a catalyst. Will they forever be ignorant to awe-inspiring spirituality? Or, will they develop their own personal sense of the sublime through a more mundane

Although, I believe that Thoreau belittled humanity’s role in nature. Humanity is more often than not considered to be a part of nature as we came directly from nature. The regenerative powers of nature and the sublime that it fosters are pulsing in our veins as we are nature’s offspring. Every breath we fill our lungs with enters our bloodstream and circulates nature’s elements through our body. Every time we exhale, we give back to nature, thus playing our role in this type of symbiosis. Moreover, this relationship transcends the physical connection of humanity as nature’s offspring into the sublime reciprocity of the metaphysical. The sublime is not bound by nature as Thoreau suggests. Rather, it is threaded inside us, within the intricacy of our sense of reality. Furthermore, when you remove the material world, nature acts a catalyst to idealize a pure sense of reality and spirituality for oneself. This sense of spirituality can be elevated by nature through the regenerative thought cycles “Man Thinking” engages in with nature, although it is ultimately found inside of