...2012 In What Ways Does Thoreau's Walden Embody the Concept of Transcendentalism? Social networking, a craze sweeping across America, allows people to become connected with their friends, family, coworkers, and acquaintances 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Users of social networking websites such as Facebook and Twitter are periodically updated with happenings and insight into the lives of others. This would likely seem meaningless and idiotic to Henry David Thoreau, a prominent transcendentalist American author. He encourages his readers to live lives “simple and well as Nature”, independent from those of others and society (Thoreau 53). He therefore moved to Walden Pond on July 4, 1845 for two years and two months in order to live a simple and independent life. Thoreau claims that “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 have not lived” (61). In Walden, Thoreau upholds beliefs that he shares with transcendental authors such as Ralph Waldo Emerson. These beliefs include solitude, self-reliance, immersion in nature, and spiritual rebirth. Transcendentalism, a philosophical movement in the 19th century, stood against the individual’s conformity to societies and institutions. Instead, transcendentalism encouraged individuals to rise above society and live free, independent lives. Transcendentalism stemmed from discontent...
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...What is one’s duty to? Is it to himself or to the society he lives in? In 1841, Henry David Thoreau accepted an offer to stay with neighboring Ralph Waldo Emerson's family and earn his keep as a handyman while he concentrated on his writing. Thoreau began to adapt to and follow Emerson’s belief in transcendentalism, writing many essays about his belief in transcendentalism. In “Civil Disobedience”, he strongly addresses its readers that they should follow their conscious and not be influenced by a government. In his work “Walden”, Thoreau discusses the insignificance of material goods. He also debates the importance of living close to nature, similar to Emerson’s “Nature”. Some may argue that Thoreau's beliefs and ideas are extreme, but in many ways, they are both idealistic and realistic. While not all of his truths can be classified as realistic, they are ideal. (Witherell and Dubrulle)...
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...Transcendentalism became a popular reform movement based upon the individual being the spiritual center of the universe. The social movement has five base themes: nonconformity, self-reliance, free-thought, confidence, and civil disobedience. Two of the central figures of this movement were Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau. Both men were known for their defiance and free speaking. Their stories, “Self-Reliance” and “Resistance to Civil Government” throughly depicted the transcendental themes of self-reliance and civil disobedience. Along with the two works, the movie Dead Poets Society also has related themes. It is through the main character, Neil Perry’s, nonconformity to his father’s wishes and the teaching of free-thought by his teacher, Mr. Keating, that Dead Poets Society falls in line with the themes of transcendentalism. It is through the...
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...Emerson and Thoreau share many of the same beliefs and are key components of the transcendentalism movement. These beliefs are easier to compare than to contrast. The way Emerson thinks of society relates to Thoreau's views on government, and both men have similar views on nature. The fundamentals of transcendentalism are rooted in the works of Ralph Waldo Emerson. In "Nature", Emerson says "Standing on the bare ground - my head bathed by the blithe air and uplifted into infinite space - all mean egotism vanishes. I become a transparent eyeball" (Nature 367). Here, He is saying nature's simplicity allows him to think clearly and have deeper thoughts. As for society, Emerson states "Society everywhere is in conspiracy against the manhood of every one of its members," Society plans to take what makes us individuals by making us into conformists "Self-reliance is its aversion"(Self-Reliance 369). With this quote, individuals are shown how Emerson believes that to combat this conformity people need self-reliance. The ideas of transcendentalism are expressed in Thoreau's In Walden. Thoreau explains his thoughts on nature similarly:"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...
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...Active Participant Through Pacifist Disobedience Thoreau's, “On Civil Disobedience”, emphasizes the significant roles that authenticity and activism play in one’s life, which encourage action and renounce determinism. By presenting the main ideas that arise from this essay, I will argue that Thoreau, along with Locke’s Treatise of Government, exhibits ideas affiliated with Libertarianism. In contrast to the belief that a priori knowledge is the only kind of knowledge that expresses certainty about ontological truths, which is independent of external experience, Transcendentalism advances the idea that there is also an internal a priori kind of knowledge which is reliable and expresses each individual’s truth. According to the book, American...
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...is not an essay of abstract theory. It is Thoreau’s extremely personal response to being imprisoned for breaking the law. Because he detested slavery and because tax revenues contributed to the support of it, Thoreau decided to become a tax rebel. There were no income taxes and Thoreau did not own enough land to worry about property taxes; but there was the hated poll tax – a capital tax levied equally on all adults within a community.Thoreau declined to pay the tax and so, in July 1846, he was arrested and jailed. He was supposed to remain in jail until a fine was paid which he also declined to pay. Without his knowledge or consent, however, relatives settled the “debt” and a disgruntled Thoreau was released after only one night. The incarceration may have been brief but it has had enduring effects through "Civil Disobedience." To...
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...While comparing Henry David Thoreau's Walden, or Life in the Woods (1854) and Ralph Waldo Emerson's Nature (1836), there are comparable beliefs regarding simplicity and the capacity of the human mind. Transcendentalism is considered a philosophy of self-reliance and individualism, however transcendentalism was often seen as more than a philosophy; it was treated almost as a religion. Nature was viewed as its church and it idealizes God as its sacred being. Emerson’s and Thoreau’s key theme in their writings was to help one reconnect with nature and gain a simpler understanding of life. For instance, Henry David Thoreau experiments the transcendentalist beliefs about nature by living at Walden Woods in a small cabin on Emerson's property. Here Thoreau discovered the simplicity in nature and the exposure it brings to our mind. Both Emerson and Thoreau believe that nature is what imposes us not to rely on others' ideas but to establish our own. Nature is always changing so we must keep seeking for the meaning of human life. Thoreau wanted to live a simple life, in order to find a deeper meaning of human existence. He writes, "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...
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...The poems from Walden, “Nature”, and “Self-Reliance” all highlight key aspects of transcendentalism. In Walden, Henry David Thoreau moved to the woods by a pond to live simply and the way he wanted to with nature. In “Nature”, Ralph Waldo Emerson, who was Thoreau’s friend, writes about how nature brings us back to who we really are. In the excerpt from “Self-Reliance”, Emerson writes about how the only person you can really trust or need is yourself in order to have a simple, happy life. Thoreau and Emerson both believed that in order to have a happy life, you need to live simply. In the excerpt from Walden called “Where I Lived, and What I Lived For.” Henry Thoreau writes that he “moved to the woods to live deliberately”. This means he willingly wanted to live in the woods to find himself in nature. He also wanted to “front only the essential facts of life, and see if...
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...Transcendentalism took off in the 1800’s with a little help from Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, and Emily Dickenson. These transcendentalists expressed their beliefs through writings such as poems and essays. These few transcendentalists went out of their way to represent their ideals and beliefs. Only a number of people understood the idea of transcendentalism because it is so complex and involved a much deeper thought process. It was this complexity within Transcendentalism that makes it stick out in history still to this day. Transcendentalism is an idealistic philosophical and social movement that developed in New England. Transcendentalism was developed in reaction to rationalism in 1836. It taught that divinity pervades all nature and humanity. The transcendentalist members held progressive views on feminism and communal living. Ralph Waldo Emerson, one of the better known transcendentalists, became a transcendentalist in 1832 which lead to the writing of “Self-Reliance” and “The American Scholar.” He later became the central figure of his literary and philosophical group, known as the American Transcendentalist. In the 1840’s he founded and co-edited the literary magazine The Dial. In 1841 and 1844 he published essays, including, “Self-Reliance,” “Friendship” and “Experience.” In “Self-Reliance” Emerson writes: A man should learn to detect and watch that gleam of light which flashes across his mind from within, more than the luster of the firmament of...
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...inhabitants in balance. More or less, naturalism is the yin to transcendentalism’s yang, and vice versa. Neither view provides a comprehensive set of answers to the world’s most pressing issues, and without equal representation of naturalism’s nor transcendentalism’s traits, the world would lose its sense of levelheadedness and...
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...In Thoreau’s Civil Disobedience, his argument is “It is not desirable to cultivate a respect for the law, so much as for the right. The only obligation which I have a right to assume is to do at any time what I think right.” Revolutionary writing characteristics would be finding a voice of your own and being independent. Some evidence of that in this quote would be that the quote is saying to be independent and do what you believe is right and screw the law. Even though the Stamp Act was the law it wasn’t right so the people of Boston had a Revolutionary idea to fight back. That was what gave our independence. We followed what we believed was right and started a revolution with it. Romantic writing was started when there was this shift from faith in reason to faith in feelings, senses, and imagination. It was about being free and trusting your instinct. Like in Moulin Rouge, the main character wanted to be a writer so he followed his gut, moved to France, and believed in love to inspire his righting. Evidence of Romantic writing characteristics in the quote would be that you follow your gut and do what you have faith in as right. The law was reason. Following what you believed as right instead was the shift. Transcendental writing was belief in nature, less need for objects, more focus on the inner self, and self-reliance. Transcendentalism was the belief that knowledge could be derived not just trust through the senses, but through intuition and contemplation of the internal...
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...Using nature to describe religion, a transcendentalist idea, Thoreau says that people who have an understanding of truth both understand and follow the Bible as well as the Constitution. He also states that those who accept the ideas of truth must take their own separate paths towards the origin of truth. This allusion to transcendentalism is used to inspire the reader to go out and find their path towards the truth and understanding of the government. Thoreau counts on the feelings of the reader to drive them to act and to realize the truth in the Constitution and how it differs from the truth that the government is currently...
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...Thesis Statement: Henry David Thoreau is one of the pioneers of Transcendentalism, and his famous work, Civil Disobedience has great effect on Mahatma Gandhi’s ideology and movement which drives the India for independence. Outline 1. Introduction 1. Brief introduction of Henry David Thoreau 2. Brief introduction of Mahatma Gandhi 2. Writing background and cores of Civil Disobedience 2.1 Writing background 2.2 Cores of Civil Disobedience 2.2.1 Conscience of human 2.2.2 Effect of morality 2.2.3 Suspicion of American’s democracy 2.3.4 In-cooperation with government 3. Embodiment on Mahatma Gandhi 3.1 Effect on Gandhi’s ideology 3.1.1 Works of Gandhi 3.1.2 Speeches of Gandhi 3.2 Effect on Gandhi’s movement 3.2.1 Gandhi in South Africa 3.2.2 Gandhi in India 4. Conclusion 1. Introduction 1.1 Brief introduction of Henry David Thoreau Henry David Thoreau was one of the most famous writers, naturalist, philosophers, abolitionists, and the pioneers of Transcendentalism in America in 19 century. He was born in Concord, Massachusetts, 1817. Thoreau met Ralph Waldo Emerson when he studied in university. And he was deeply influenced by Emerson who advocated that man should be true to himself and close to nature. Emerson was not only a friend but also a teacher to Thoreau. They had edited the journal Sundial together. Thoreau graduated from Harvard College in 1837 and worked as...
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...The Concept of Nature in the Poetry of William Wordsworth and Robert Frost : A Comparative Study Chapter One Introduction 1. Background Poets have long been inspired to tune their lyrics to the variations in landscape, the changes in season, and the natural phenomena around them. The Greek poet Theocritus began writing idylls in the third century B.C.E. to glorify and honor the simplicity of rural life--creating such well known characters as Lycidas, who has inspired dozens of poems as the archetypal shepherd, including the famous poem "Lycidas" by John Milton. An idyll was originally a short, peaceful pastoral lyric, but has come to include poems of epic adventure set in an idealized past, including Lord Alfred Tennyson's take on Arthurian legend, The Idylls of the King. The Biblical Song of Songs is also considered an idyll, as it tells its story of love and passion by continuously evoking imagery from the natural world. The more familiar form of surviving pastoral poetry that has retained its integrity is the eclogue, a poem attuned to the natural world and seasons, placed in a pleasant, serene, and rural place, and in which shepherds often converse. The first eclogue was written by Virgil in 37 B.C.E. The eclogue also flourished in the Italian Renaissance, its most notable authors being Dante and Petrarch. It became something of a requirement for young poets, a form they had to master before embarking upon great original work. Sir Philip Sidney’s Arcadia and Edmund Spenser’s...
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...4 March: City of God – Utopian Reader – include a little bit on it – 22 volumes in all. Christianity – Augustine – classicly trained greek scholar. City in north Africa. Story like apostle Paul – orginially a person who persecuted Christians – north African wealth family from – found enlightenment in Christianity. Once he joined became one of the early scholars trained in greek – regulized Christian theology. Influence on western world – top four or five who influenced. Confessions and City of God his writings…look up! What’s the purpose of improving human society – complex – why do it? Can human society be made better? Why bother, what is the point, justification? Takes effort, misery involved, change, unknowns, takes energy, takes risks. HAPPINESS – justification for improving society. What do you have to have to be happy? What is happiness – PHI 101 – happiness according to whom? Lack of misery; literally the elimination of misery. Secondly, food – gives pleasure – Happiness is lack of human misery and maximizing /pleasure and happiness. Bliss 24/7 – hedonism Epicureanism – eliminating misery and maximizing happiness. The justification of utopianism = why did plato want the republic? Justisifcation for improving human society among the Greeks? Poor always poor, always unhappy, death claims everyone - it is rational to maximize pleasure and eliminate misery. Do eternally accouding to plato. Opinions – 1. Relativism is a retreat in the 20th century. Can’t...
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