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The "young grub" metaphor which he used to relate to the poets was confusing and I could not figure out how this metaphor was used in connection to the poets. Another complicated metaphor used by Emerson in his writings where he talks of the human mind claiming "It is one central fire, which, flaming now out of the lips of Etna, lightens the capes of Sicily." Likewise Emerson uses such metaphors which are difficult to understand throughout his essay and created confusion for me during my reading of "The American Scholar." No doubt Emerson's essay is a remarkable piece of American literature, his style of writing and his complicated metaphors make certain parts of his essay hard to read.
Regarding a scholar Emerson says that a scholar is the one who resists vulgarity "by preserving and communicating heroic sentiment, noble biographies, melodious verse and conclusions of history." To the best of my understanding, a true scholar should be competent enough to point out the dangers in certain trends that are or might be prevalent in society. His role should not be restricted to "heroic sentiments." While at the same time Emerson talks about physical labor and how it is important to the scholar, I do not fully understand the reasons for such an emphasis. However, the form that Emerson chooses in writing his essay is rather complicated and the metaphors rather confusing. He has talked probably about the Greek mythology when talking about the perfect Man but his application of that perfect Man to the idea being presented in his essay, to the best of my understanding, does not fit in appropriately. His stresses on the importance of scholars and the role that they should play and at the same time he urges others not to use books for any other purpose than pure inspiration. Emerson is found to be teaching the audience that they should try to become scholarly and add to the future rather than living lives and adding nothing to the society and the community. From what I understood Emerson, prefers and wants to encourage people to be writers more than readers. He acknowledges that reading is good but is not very enthusiastic about the idea to encourage others to read more. This concept is confusing because from what I know the more a person reads, the more he would become refined and would be able to express his thoughts clearly in what he writes.
Ralph Waldo Emerson was more of a pragmatic and realistic thinker than a philosopher in the true sense of the term. His views on life and existence and human thinking are therefore realist without being influenced by any religious dogma or creed. There are two underlying concepts in all his works- firstly the admiration and discussion of nature, its ways leading to the discussion of being. We can understand that
Ralph Waldo Emerson's later "Self-Reliance" far more likely to be appealing to American college students today than his early "American Scholar"-ship Ralph Waldo Emerson's Transcendentalist philosophy shifted and changed over the course of his life. Much as Emerson's idea that consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds embraces the idea that contradiction is not something to be feared within the hearts and minds of human beings, nor that ideological consistency and
Ralph Waldo Emerson and presents a theoretical letter to Emerson himself. Ralph Waldo Emerson and Two of His Essays Ralph Waldo Emerson, in his essay on self-reliance, very blatantly states his belief that people should be nonconformists. Of course, he qualifies this with the statement that non-conformists are often beaten down by the world, since the world loves conformity. However, Emerson is a big proponent of being reliant on only one's
The deep, gloomy forest holds the key to the freedom of the people: here they learn to be themselves again. In the midst of nature, "the yellow leave will show no vestige of the white man's tread." (Hawthorne, (http://www.online-literature.com/hawthorne/scarletletter).Both writers belong to the transcendentalist movement and so their views resemble each other: Emerson's nature is a reflection of the human spirit, while Hawthorne's forest reveals people's true character. Bibliography Emerson, R.W.:
This may seem cruel and ungenerous, but Emerson would argue that the most generous thing that can be done for people is to help them become individuals. That will benefit them more than tossing a dollar in the alms box. Hence, through his essay, he hopes to encourage others on their road to self-reliance. The last few lines of "Self-Reliance" call on the readers to be brave and to trust
Edgar Allen Poe, Washington Irving, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Emily Dickinson, Mark Twain, Henry David Thoreau, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Harriet Beecher Stowe, James Fennimore Cooper, Mary Rowlandson, Walt Whitman) describe writing style, a discussion literary work. Edgar Allan Poe: Poe's amoral universe The American poet and short story author Edgar Allan Poe is one of the most famous mystery and horror writers of the 19th century. Contrary to many of his contemporaries, Poe