Ralph Waldo Emerson Essay - 1326 Words

Ralph Waldo Emerson Ralph Waldo Emerson was born on May 25, 1803 in Boston, Massachusetts. Early in his life, Emerson followed in the footsteps of his father and became minister, but this ended in 1832 when he felt he could no longer serve as a minister in good conscience. He experienced doubts about the Christian church and its doctrine. These reservations were temporarily alleviated by his brief association with Unitarianism, but soon Emerson became discontent with even their decidedly liberal interpretation of Christianity. After a while, however, he discovered the writings of British poet, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, and German philosopher, Immanuel Kant, and used their works to shape his own. Emerson’s wife died in 1831, an†¦show more content†¦One of his most beloved essays to readers and writers alike, â€Å"The Poet† offers numerous insights that clearly had incalculable impact on American Romanticism (Baym 1177). Perhaps the best summary of â€Å"The Poet† can be found within the essay itself. At the end of the third paragraph, Emerson defines the poet as â€Å"The man without impediment, who sees and handles that which others dream of, traverses the whole scale of experience, and its representative of man, in virtue of being the largest power to receive and to impart.† Clearly, Emerson’s definition of a poet is broad, yet oddly specific as well. An important feature of this definition is its suggestion that the poet somehow transcends humanity; the poet must not be hindered by humanity, since he is its representative. This principle, however, is fully articulated when Emerson lists the three functions the poet serves. First, according to Emerson, the Universe gave birth to three children: the Knower, the Doer, and the Sayer. They respectively stand for â€Å"the love of truth, for the love of good, and for the love of beauty.† The poet is synonymous with the Sayer, since heShow MoreRelated Ralph Waldo Emerson Essay1084 Words   |  5 Pages Ralph Waldo Emerson Properly Acknowledged by nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Ralph Waldo Emerson certainly took his place in the history of American Literature . He lived in a time when romanticism was becoming a way of thinking and beginning to bloom in America, the time period known as The Romantic Age. Romantic thinking stressed on human imagination and emotion rather than on basic facts and reason. Ralph Waldo Emerson not only provided plenty of that, but he also nourished it and inspiredRead MoreRalph Waldo Emerson And Transcendentalism1649 Words   |  7 PagesRalph Waldo Emerson is a transcendentalist in my eyes because of his consistent promotion of free thought, personal insight, and individuality. 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In this essay, Emerson emphasizes the foundation of transcendentalism, â€Å"a religious and philosophical movement that developed during the late 1820s and 30sRead More Ralph Waldo Emerson Essay1000 Words   |  4 Pages Ralph Waldo Emersonamp;#9;amp;#9;amp;#9;amp;#9;amp;#9;amp;#9;amp;#9;I am writing this essay on the beliefs and thoughts of Ralph Waldo Emerson on the subjects of individuality, society, government, technology, and spirituality. amp;#9;I think that Emerson believes that every person should be as much as individual as they can. Be who you are on the inside, dont try to be like everyone else. Dont worry about fitting in, if someone is a real friend, they will like you for who you are, realRead MoreRalph Waldo Emerson Essay examples1043 Words   |  5 Pagesidea of a universal connection between all objects. Out of many contributing to this movement, one man named of Ralph Waldo Emerson distinguished himself as singular above all. With such essays and works as Nature and Self-Reliance, Emerson set himself as the leader of a movement toward Nature and the entity known as â€Å"the Over-soul†. The works and philosophies of the late Ralph Waldo Emerson have aided in the reformation of the human character through his tantalizing lyric prose, evident underlyingRead MoreEssay on The Influence of Ralph Waldo Emerson995 Words   |  4 PagesChris Schlegel 6/18/08 English 245 American Literature I Dr. Calendar Primary Source Paper The Influence of Ralph Waldo Emerson Ralph Waldo Emerson is considered by many as one of the most respected and widely known authors in the history of American literature. From his famous book â€Å"Nature†, to his various essays, poems and lectures, Emerson’s collection of works maintain an authentic diverse style that separated him from other authors. The confidenceRead MoreRalph Waldo Emerson: A Brief Biography756 Words   |  3 PagesRalph Waldo Emerson was born in Boston, Massachusetts on May 25, 1803. He was the son of William and Ruth Emerson and was born second of five sons who made it to adulthood. The other four sons were named William, Edward, Robert Bulkeley, and Charles. Mr. and Mrs. Emerson also had three other children who sadly died during their childhood. Those three were named Phebe, John Clarke, and Mary Caroline. Emerson’s father died of stomach cancer two weeks before Waldo’s eighth birthday on May 12, 1811,