Transcendentalist writers were a group of intellectuals in the 19th century who believed in the inherent goodness of people and nature, and the power of individual experience and intuition. They believed that truth and knowledge could be obtained through individual contemplation and self-reliance, rather than through organized religion or traditional social institutions.
One of the most prominent transcendentalist writers was Ralph Waldo Emerson, who is often considered the leader of the movement. In his essays and lectures, Emerson argued for the importance of individualism and self-reliance, and encouraged his readers to think for themselves and to trust their own experiences and insights. He believed that people should live in harmony with nature and with their own inner selves, and that they should seek to find meaning and purpose in their lives through their own individual experiences.
Another influential transcendentalist writer was Henry David Thoreau, who is best known for his book "Walden," in which he describes his experiences living in a simple cabin in the woods and exploring the natural world around him. Thoreau was a strong advocate for living a simple and self-sufficient life, and he believed that people should resist the materialism and conformity of modern society in order to find true happiness and fulfillment.
Other notable transcendentalist writers include Margaret Fuller, who was a leading feminist and social reformer, and Nathaniel Hawthorne, who was a prolific novelist and short story writer. These writers, along with others, helped to establish the transcendentalist movement as a major force in American literature and thought, and their ideas continue to influence contemporary thinking on issues related to individualism, self-reliance, and the nature of truth and knowledge.
Transcendentalism (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy)
Works Consulted Emerson, Ralph Waldo. They did not believe in the idea of exercising intellect and reason to find God. Similarly to the value of idealism, the passage discusses the importance of the divinity of nature in numerous instances. Just as they believed they could find the truth of the world through themselves and their own nature and intuition, nature itself is right and unchecked by any of humanity's ideas and laws. In the presence of nature, a wild delight runs through the man, in spite of real sorrows.
Transcendentalism encouraged man to look closely at the world, to look closely at himself, and to be radically honest about what he sees. This group continued to grow, meet, and discuss, and eventually became known as The Transcendental Club. Impact on Education A major Transcendentalist in the education field was Elizabeth Peabody. University of Pennsylvania Press, 2011. His mother was Anglican, and Emerson was influenced by the works of several Anglican writers and thinkers. As an educated man, it was expected that he would become a lawyer, doctor, business owner, or church leader.
This relationship enabled Henry David Thoreau to fully implement Transcendentalism in his own life by moving to a cabin on Emerson's land and living on the shore of Walden Pond for two years. Though today we look at pictures of them with their lovely grandfather-like faces in black and white, they were quite modern in their day. On her return to America with her husband and son, she drowned in a hurricane off the coast of Fire Island, New York. Transcendentalism was a spiritual and artistic renaissance that took place in the United States from roughly 1835-1880. They asserted a deeper spiritual understanding of the individual's unique connection with the universe. They helped to shape the very American notion of individuality and the importance of recognizing each person's moral worth.
The Concord Writers: Top Left: Nathaniel Hawthorne. She viewed playtime as critical to the education and socialization of young children. Moreover, the Transcendental assertion that people are born good conflicted with some religious doctrine at the time. Another defining feature of transcendentalist thought is the importance given to individualistic ways of thinking and living. Transcendentalist Authors Emerson and Thoreau are the two best known of the Transcendentalist authors. In my view, this is their lasting legacy, and as valid today as it was in their time. For the Transcendentalists, this was a big no-no! When Thoreau was 19 years old, he first read Emerson's famous essay Nature, in which Emerson clearly lays out the fundamental ideas that make up the philosophy of transcendentalism.
A quote which highlights the characteristic of idealism comes from Emerson's essay, Nature: "Whether nature enjoy a substantial existence without, or is only in the apocalypse of the mind, it is alike useful and alike venerable to me. Out of all the Concord writers, Thoreau had the strongest connection to the town. Emerson and Thoreau: History and Contributors Transcendentalism began in New England, particularly in Concord. The group included George Ripley and Bronson Alcott, had some 30 meetings in four years, and was a sponsor of The Dial and Brook Farm. The term oversoul is a transcendentalist term, which explains that everything is connected and thus happens for a reason; therefore, transcendentalists also believe that, since nature is divine, we must not interfere with it and leave it be as God intended. As the writer or reader imagines, he transcends himself.
Transcendentalist Values Transcendentalists believed in numerous values, however they can all be condensed into three basic, essential values: individualism, idealism, and the divinity of nature. Two of the most prevalent literary eras were Transcendentalism and American Romanticism. Emerson called poets 'liberating gods. American Romanticism authors were most prolific between 1830-1865. Other members of the Transcendentalist movement include Margaret Fuller, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Amos Bronson Alcott, Frederic Henry Hedge, Theodore Parker and Walt Whitman. His belief in self-reliance and solitude is clearly reflected in these lines from Walden: I find it wholesome to be alone the greater part of the time.
They believed there was something powerful about nature which could teach us more than the opinion of any other human. Thoreau lived at Walden for just under three years, a time during which he sometimes visited friends and conducted business in town. Whitman is known as the father of free verse poetry In the time that they were living, the Transcendentalists were really rebels. He drew the latter conclusion after meeting the two great Romantic poets of the time, Wordsworth and Coleridge. For example, I think immediately of Elizabeth Gilbert's bestselling memoir Eat, Pray, Love.
Transcendentalist Writers : The Transcendentalist Movement...
Overall, the major elements of aesthetics that we can attribute to the Transcendentalists include a new definition of the role of the poet and a different perspective of nature. Transcendentalist Ideas Emerson was at the heart of the American Transcendentalist movement Now bear with me, I know this sounds a bit voodoo or New Age: the Transcendentalists believed that for every person there exists a private relationship between the self and the universe. Margaret Fuller: A New American Life, Boston and New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. They were quite critical of conformity, or forcing one's behavior to match social expectations or standards. Remember how we said some of their original doctrines were based on the works of spiritual advisors and Hindu teachings? At the time of their meetings, New England was still holding on to a remnant of Puritanical values. This was very different from the way people had lived their lives in the country and exposed them to harsh working conditions and toxic fumes. The Beginnings of Unitarianism in America, Boston: Beacon.
How can we know what is really true? Henry David Thoreau Emerson's Transcendentalism: Who Was Ralph Waldo Emerson? This allows him to move beyond his personal experience, his mind and body, to consider something anew. The Transcendentalists wanted their work to have an altering effect on individuals and on society as a whole. I become a transparent eyeball. Beliefs like this reduced the influence of highly structured sects like Catholicism in the country. Henry David Thoreau, a writer and naturalist, was greatly affected by Emerson's writings and formed a close friendship with him. Recently divorced, she finds self-reliance. Her father, Amos Bronson Alcott, was friends with Ralph Waldo Emerson, who later helped the Alcott family find a house to purchase in 1845, the Wayside on Lexington Road.
The health of the eye seems to demand a horizon. It is a deliverance, which does not deliver. Fuller was in Europe from 1846—9, sending back hundreds of pages for the Tribune. The popularity of Transcendentalism brought several issues to the forefront of society, influenced the way many artists painted and made the authors influential in their own right. In this powerful essay, Thoreau explains why he believes that each individual has the power to determine right from wrong, regardless of the rules imposed by society. Americans were interested in this message and, while most Americans did not leave their lives to live in the woods, the movement impacted several aspects of American culture. Conversation Reading, contemplation and walks in nature were important spiritual practices for the Transcendentalists.
