Essays on Ralph Waldo Emerson

In Ralph Waldo Emerson’s piece, “Experience”, the main subject revolves around the powers that define the life of the common man. Instead of following social expectations, Emerson encourages his followers to obey their personal desire and he urges his writers to be frank with other individuals in their relationships. Emerson begins his essay with a...

Ralph Waldo Emerson once stated ‘do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.’ Ideas like Emerson show the true meaning of transcendentalism. Transcendentalism was a huge cultural movement in the nineteenth century. Ideas of this movement still influence our society in the twenty-first century....

Ralph Waldo Emerson’s (1841) “Self-reliance” and Walt Whitman’s (1892) “Song of Myself” express similar ideas about self-reliance. Emerson’s text is entirely about the topic of self-reliance, but Whitman’s (1892) poetic form conveys very similar arguments even if they are in the form of poetry rather than prose. Both authors are critical of society and the...