Emerson's Self-Reliance: Individuality and Inner Fulfillment

Introduction: The Challenge of Self-Reliance

A fulfilling life begins and ends with the self, according to Ralph Waldo Emerson. In his essay "Self-Reliance," Emerson expounds on what it truly means to be self-reliant and happy. While self-reliance sounds like an easy thing to achieve, it is actually a most difficult one given the nature of society. Outside forces are incredibly distracting, and it takes determination to look inward to find oneself. Emerson tackles this issue seriously and with a passion that can only be described as contagious. The processes outlined in "Self-Reliance" are important because thinking is a difficult thing to do. Our society is filled with stimuli coming at us from all angles, and people will be less productive and self-reliant if they are distracted. Emerson understood that the human psyche needs a time of rejuvenation to function at its best. Thinking about life, one's choices, one's mistakes, and one's future is hard sometimes, but it is necessary if we are to be happy. We simply cannot look to others for our happiness and fulfillment.

Looking Inward for Answers

Emerson was adamant about man looking into himself for answers. The first line of "Self-Reliance" urges us not to seek outside ourselves. Fulfillment emerges from a life of seeking rather than following. Many people around us are content with following someone else because, at times, it is the easiest path. Emerson advises against this because it will lead to nothing but emptiness when we stop to reflect on our lives. When we look to ourselves for answers, we are practicing true self-reliance — and while this sounds simple, it can be difficult when we are encouraged daily to listen to and follow others. Emerson writes, "There is a time in every man's education when he arrives at the conviction that envy is ignorance; that imitation is suicide" (Emerson). We function better when we are not copying someone else or envying another person's life.

Individuality and Creative Originality

Emerson also believed deeply in individuality — a concept referred to as "rugged individualism" by later thinkers and public figures. Emerson wrote, "The soul created the arts wherever they have flourished. It was in his own mind that the artist sought his model. It was an application of his own thought to the thing to be done and the conditions to be observed" (Emerson). Here, Emerson points out that man has only to follow his own instincts to be creative. Art becomes a human outlet that speaks to millions, and it cannot simply be taught. We can learn about art and artists, but art itself comes from the soul. This creation is fulfillment.

Emerson knew the importance of a single unique thought coupled with desire. The power to make something distinctive lives within every person, and "none but he knows what that is which he can do, nor does he know until he has tried" (Emerson). For Emerson, this self-expression is not optional. He states, "Insist on yourself; never imitate . . . That which each can do best, none but his Maker can teach him. No man yet knows what it is, nor can, till that person has exhibited it" (Emerson). To discover one's true talents, one must be willing to accept them from within.