Transcendentalism Essay

1131 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Henry David Thoreau and his ideas of nature

A Rewarding Lifestyle
The ideals of Transcendentalism have transcended throughout time. Transcendentalists are known for civil disobedience and individual intuition. One of the most well-known Transcendentalists is Henry David Thoreau. Thoreau was one who fought for individual intuition, passion for nature and simplicity and abolition.
Transcendentalists focus on the emphasis of individual intuition and fighting for beliefs. “Transcendentalism emphasized individual intuition as a central means of understanding reality” (Quinn 1). The ideals of stress the importance of understanding one`s beliefs and gut feelings in order to understand their place and purpose in reality. Many Transcendentalists lived a very rewarding life that was “[…] free from the constraints of the material as well as the expectations of the social world” (Wayne 1). Transcendentalists believed that in order to be fully in check with one`s beliefs, one must live free from worldly matters and constraints from the acceptance of others. Henry David Thoreau is one of the most iconic Transcendentalists, “his ultimate goal was to find his place in the universe. He developed his senses to ascertain more accurately where that place was” (Harding 2). Many people try to find their place in the world, and develop a true sense of who they …show more content…

He was devoted to his work and his beliefs and “encourage [individuals] in their duty to fight in specific instances” (Harding 9). Thoreau was devoted to work to reform the society for the better, and “from the beginning of his life to the very end, Thoreau believed that all reform must come from within and cannot be imposed by any outside force. We cannot reform society; we can reform only the individual” (Harding 7). In result of Thoreau`s strong leadership and good works and beliefs he believed that “the reformation of society will automatically follow” (Harding 7), in result of his actions and

Show More
Related

  • Henry Thoreau vs. Chris McCandless

    841 Words  | 2 Pages

    Many people have theories and philosophies about life in general. There have been countless amounts of books published by countless amounts of people on the ideas of people in the past and the present. Transcendentalism falls into a sector of all of these ideas. Transcendentalism has affected many people since the philosophy was first introduced. Henry Thoreau is a name that is always associated with transcendentalism through one of his famous novels,Walden. John Krakauer is able to explain how transcendentalism has affected Chris McCandless in the novel Into The Wild. McCandless's life is comparable to Thoreau's in a variety of ways such as motives, however both McCandless and Thoreau's lives are much different by means such as their reasons for traveling, and what they did.

    Read More

  • Chris McCandless: A True Transcendentalist

    882 Words  | 2 Pages

    There have been many minor transcendentalists in today’s society. Martin Luther King Jr. is a prime example. He was a non-conformist.Individuals around the world still continue to look up to Martin Luther King Jr. and really admire him for this. Another transcendentalist is a man named Christopher McCandless. Chris McCandless is admirable like other transcendentalists because he was a non-conformist, fought to overcome the hardships of life, and accepted his fate which proves that he was a modern day transcendentalist.

    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

  • The Philosophies of Transcendentalism

    372 Words  | 1 Pages

    Transcendentalist writing had to do with the human sprit and its connection to nature. Transcendentalist thinkers believed that all things that occurred in nature were supposed to happen. For example, if there were forest fire that happened naturally, it would be looked at as a good thing because the ground gets nutrients. An anti-transcendentalist would see forest-fires as an act of destruction.

    Read More

  • Comparing Transcendentalism In Emerson And Henry David Thoreau

    552 Words  | 2 Pages

    Transcendentalism was born between the 18th and the early 20th century. It's a philosophy of individualism and self-reliance. Transcendentalists strongly believed in the power of the individual. Their beliefs are intently linked with those of the romantics but varied by an endeavor to embrace or to not abjure the factual science. Additionally, they believed that society and its institution primarily manipulated the integrity of the individual. They had faith that people are at their best when they are frankly self reliant and independent. Both Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau believed in transcendentalism and dedicated their occupation to follow transcendentalist philosophy. Furthermore , they were major figures in the American Intellectual movement . They shared congruent ideas but used different ways to deliver it .

    Read More

  • What Was The Role Of Transcendentalism In The 1800's

    393 Words  | 1 Pages

    Transcendentalism is the American literary, philosophical, and political movement of the early nineteenth century. This movement had a large focus on the works of Ralph Waldo Emerson. Emerson was considered

    Read More

  • Emerson and Thoreau

    780 Words  | 2 Pages

    An influential literary movement in the nineteenth century, transcendentalism placed an emphasis on the wonder of nature and its deep connection to the divine. As the two most prominent figures in the transcendentalist movement, Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau whole-heartedly embraced these principles. In their essays “Self-Reliance” and “Civil Disobedience”, Emerson and Thoreau, respectively, argue for individuality and personal expression in different manners. In “Self-Reliance”, Emerson calls for individuals to speak their minds and resist societal conformity, while in “Civil Disobedience” Thoreau urged Americans to publicly state their opinions in order to improve their own government.

    Read More

  • Transcendentalism

    1611 Words  | 4 Pages

    ...ed to an optimistic emphasis on individualism, self-reliance, and rejection of traditional authority” (American 1). The major players in the transcendentalist movement are Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau. They shared ideas such as self-reliance, and ideas about how there is a divine being that controls every person. They influenced many other writers and they even had an effect on the American society, then and now. Transcendentalism was a philosophy and a way of life. It will continue to be this as long as we have access to the great minds of the transcendental movement.

    Read More

  • Henry David Thoreau's Literary Experience

    1043 Words  | 3 Pages

    In “Civil Disobedience” Thoreau emphasizes the need for self-reliance (“Clendenning”). This statement is fitting because Thoreau was one of the most self-reliant men of his time period. He was an individual and enjoyed nature. Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862) is closely related to the Transcendentalism movement, which lasted a mere ten years in the 1830s and 1840s. Transcendentalism is the belief of self-reliance, individuality, social reform, and relying on reason. Henry David Thoreau’s love of nature, languages, and contemporary English, as well as the growth of Transcendentalism greatly influenced the life of this great American Author.

    Read More

  • The Influence Of American Identity In Nathaniel Hawthorne's Young Goodman Brown

    718 Words  | 2 Pages

    One of these thinkers was Henry David Thoreau, a transcendentalist. This movement reflected a deeper thought process moving through the country where longstanding ideas were questioned and the role of nature was put into more prominence. Thoreau says, “I thus dispose of the superfluous and see things as they are, grand and beautiful” (Thoreau 34). This speaks to the overall thought process of the budding country and the people who make it up. Seeing things as they are and doing away with excess is a cornerstone of the transcendentalist movement, which took hold of the dominant thinkers of the

    Read More

  • Henry David Thoreau's Influences In The Antebellum Period

    989 Words  | 2 Pages

    Thoreau wrote, “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.” The words transformed people’s lives to think more of the why in life and live with a purpose not just do what they are told, which was a driving idea within the Transcendentalist movements. Transcendentalist were hard to define, but perhaps one of the fathers of transcendentalism Ralph Waldo Emerson defines it most gracefully in a speech he gave, “The Transcendentalist adopts the whole connection of spiritual doctrine, He believes in miracle, in the perpetual openness of the human mind to new influx of light and power: he believes in inspiration, and in ecstasy”. As Emerson’s key student and self-proclaimed Transcendentalist Thoreau fulfilled these requirements to help further this movement of higher

    Read More

  • Chris McCandless: A True Transcendentalist

    1071 Words  | 3 Pages

    Ralph Waldo Emerson is considered the Father of Transcendentalism because he first introduced the idea of a simplistic and intuitive way of life. He claims, “Whoso would be a man must be a nonconformist . . . Nothing is at least sacred but the integrity of your own mind” (“Self-Reliance” 392). Nonconformity is an essential part of Emerson’s definition of a transcendentalist. To be able to live a truly boundless and accomplished life, one must not fall into the daily, busy life of society. He or she must stand out and follow their intuition, even it is not considered the norm. The only way to be content is to trust one’s instinct, not be jaded by the pressures society.

    Read More

  • Argumentative Essay On Transcendentalism

    999 Words  | 2 Pages

    Transcendentalism is a social, religious, and literary movement: a philosophy. Combining elements from the romantic period with eastern philosophical beliefs, it sought to fight against rationalism and conformism by inspiring individuals to look into their inner selves and embrace their own beliefs. One of the spearheads leading this movement was Ralph Waldo Emerson: an American writer and philosopher who sought to teach others what he himself had found. Transcendalists, such as Emerson, viewed society as a catalyst for downfall and instead believed that humans were inherently good and pure; embracing our inner feelings and emotions and ignoring expectations and conformity are essential to achieve happiness and fulfillment. Such ideas can

    Read More

  • The Devil And Tom Walker And Transcendentalism

    1220 Words  | 3 Pages

    A transcendentalist values the natural world compared to the obsession of the synthetic values of those before them. Among the well respected Transcendentalists are Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Washington Irving, and Henry David Thoreau. A common dream world consists of simplicity, admiration, and individualism, and there hasn’t been a clear line drawn regarding the connection between transcendentalism and utopian thinking. A future ‘utopia’ should be founded on transcendentalist philosophies in order to restore the value of nature and one's own individual spirit, due to the qualities shared by a 21st century ‘utopia’ and transcendental ideas.

    Read More

  • Comparing the Lives of Thoreau and Hawthorne

    932 Words  | 2 Pages

    Henry David Thoreau's dominant trait was being a Transcendentalist. Transcendentalism is the belief asserting the existence of an ideal spiritual reality that transcends the experimental and scientific and is knowable through instinct.

    Read More

More about Transcendentalism Essay

Open Document