Transcendentalism Is Not A Beneficial Way Of Life

Transcendentalism is when one goes beyond the regular human experiences of the material world and society to find true peace. Thoreau’s â€Å"Walden† is about leaving the cities, abandoning one’s possessions and living out in nature to find one s true self. Emerson’s â€Å"Self- Reliance† is about resisting society and living true to oneself and never following society’s standards. A modern Transcendentalist named Josh from the novel The Gospel According to Larry by Janet Tashjian follows in the footsteps of Emerson and Thoreau and tries to live a Transcendentalist way of life. When a person does follow the transcendentalist way of life, they will find that it will always lead back to the material world and society and that they cannot escape it. The Transcendentalist way of life is not a beneficial way of life. Transcendentalist Thoreau believed that one should follow his or her own emotions. Thoreau thoughts are shown vividly when Thoreau in â€Å"Walden† says, â€Å"I did not wish to live what was not life, living is so dear; nor did I wish to practice resignation, unless it was quite necessary.† (Thoreau 26-27). Thoreau wanted to live freely and if he did not live this way he was not living life. However when Josh uses his own emotions like Thoreau, things do not end well for him. When Josh tries to follow his own emotions, he wants to tell Beth that he is actually Lary however, Josh tells what the consequences of his emotions caused him when he says â€Å"I did something worse. I kissedShow MoreRelatedNature Ralph Walden Emerson and Henry David Thoreau Walden1693 Words   |  7 Pagesare both inspired from transcendentalism movement. Finally, their theme are both the same, they deal with mainly the idea of ‘nature’. While comparing these two essays, it is better to look at them deeper separately. Nature is an essay written by Ralph Waldo Emerson and published in 1836. The importance of this work is that transcendentalism arose with this art of work. Transcendentalism is mainly a combination of reason and emotion; in a more detailed way, transcendentalism is about self-relianceRead MoreAnalysis Of The Book Into The Wild By Jon Krakauer1669 Words   |  7 PagesElements of Transcendentalism In the book, â€Å"Into the Wild† by Jon Krakauer, Chris McCandless is an in-the-closet transcendentalist; all of his ethics match up with those of a transcendentalist, yet he never admits he is one. McCandless agrees with all of the components of transcendentalism and follows them unremittingly as soon as he graduates from college, and he lives by those components to a fault, which ultimately led to his death. Deliberate living, nonconformity, and simplicity are three cardinalRead MoreRalph Waldo Emerson And Transcendentalism1649 Words   |  7 Pageshis consistent promotion of free thought, personal insight, and individuality. Transcendentalism is the combination of the beliefs of nonconformity, self-reliance, free thought, confidence, and importance of nature. When I looked further into its meaning I came to realize it encompasses the growth and renewal of the individual, revolt against conformity, and basically promotes all sorts of reformation. Transcendentalism is real ly just a collection of eclectic ideas about literature, philosophy, religionRead MoreComparing Emersons Writings with Whitmans Writings659 Words   |  3 Pagesnatural occurrence and set order. When Whitman starts writing, he adopts Emerson’s guidelines in order to become a great poet. In Transcendentalism, one of the commonalities in the writing is the idea of nature as a beneficial part of the world. The natural world to be precise is an underused and not understood piece of the world. Emerson and Whitman both saw nature as a beneficial topic to study in their writings. Emerson and Whitman both studied and reflected upon nature in order to understand lessonsRead MoreThemes Of Individualism And Carpe Diem Developed From The Transcendentalist Movement898 Words   |  4 Pagesthe late 1820s and 30s in the Eastern region of the United States. Transcendentalism describes equal men and women who contain knowledge about the world around them. Instead of logic, this knowledge comes through imagination. An idea from this movement is how Americans trust themselves to be their own authority through ethics. A transcendentalist accepts these ideas not as religious beliefs but as a way of understanding life. Ralph Waldo Emerson, a transcendentalist, urged Americans to stop lookingRead MorePeace Through Self Reliance And Carpe Diem923 Words   |  4 Pages1820s and 30s in the Eastern region of the United States. Transcendentalism is defined as equal men and women containing knowledge about the world around them. However, this knowledge comes through imaginati on, instead of logic. A concept from this movement describes how Americans trust themselves to be their own authority through ethics. A transcendentalist accepts these ideas not as religious beliefs but as a way of understanding life. Ralph Waldo Emerson, a transcendentalist and poet, urged AmericansRead MoreNatural Justice : The Crux Of Transcendentalism And Abolitionism1651 Words   |  7 PagesLaurel Day HIST 1301-066 3 November 2015 Natural Justice: The Crux of Transcendentalism and Abolitionism The year was 1850. President Millard Fillmore had signed the Fugitive Slave Act into law, giving southern slave-owners the right to claim slaves they alleged had run away from their property in exchange for the federal government claiming California as a free state. Fillmore would not have signed the act without the pressure created by numerous slave rebellions over the last fifty years, withRead MoreAnalysis Of Emersons Self-Reliance By Ralph Waldo Emerson1179 Words   |  5 PagesIn the mid nineteenth century, Ralph Waldo Emerson led a movement to spread the idea of Transcendentalism through one of his famous essay, â€Å"Self-Reliance†, to advocate how an individual can achieve success and happiness. In order to achieve one’s fullest potential, one must resisted and rise above the temptation of materials of the physical world and start using one’s intuition. Emerson looks at the contemporary society as a corrupted for a soul to inhabit because of its depen dence to the technologyRead MoreIs Transcendentalism The Way Of Life?1423 Words   |  6 PagesIs Transcendentalism the way to live life? Transcendentalism is when one goes beyond the regular human experiences of the material world and society to find true peace. Thoreau’s â€Å"Walden† is about leaving the cities, abandoning one’s possessions and living out in nature to find one s true self. Emerson’s â€Å"Self- Reliance† is about resisting society and living true to oneself and never following society’s standards. A modern Transcendentalist named Josh from the novel The Gospel According to LarryRead MoreAnalysis Of Ralph Waldo Emerson And Henry David Thoreau1183 Words   |  5 PagesFace In the early mid-nineteenth century, a philosophical movement known as transcendentalism took root and flourished in America. It evolved into a predominantly literary expression which placed an emphasis on the corruptions of organized religion, political parties, and societal involvement; above all, the movement promoted the wonders of â€Å"nature† and its deep connection to the divine. The adherents through transcendentalism believed that knowledge could be arrived through intuition and contemplation