
This book examines the nature writing and philosophy of one of America's most important writers, and the founder of Transcendentalism. His work influenced Henry David Thoreau, Walt Whitman and many others, both at home and abroad. Here are excerpts from his writings, gleaned from personal journals as well as published works, to provide a glimpse into the mind of a true lover of nature. Walt McLaughlin has compiled this selection of Emerson's most thought-provoking nature writing. The text is accompanied by 34 Roderick MacIver watercolors.
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1803–1882
Ralph Waldo Emerson was an American philosopher, essayist, and poet, best remembered for leading the Transcendentalist movement of the mid-19th century. His teachings directly influenced the growing New Thought movement of the mid-1800s. He was seen as a champion of individualism and a prescient critic of the countervailing pressures of society. Emerson gradually moved away from the religious and social beliefs of his contemporaries, formulating and expressing the philosophy of Transcendentalism in his 1836 essay, Nature. As a result of this ground-breaking work he gave a speech entitled The American Scholar in 1837, which Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr. considered to be America's "Intellectual Declaration of Independence". Considered one of the great orators of the time, Emerson's enthusiasm and respect for his audience enraptured crowds. His support for abolitionism late in life created controversy, and at times he was subject to abuse from crowds while speaking on the topic. When asked to sum up his work, he said his central doctrine was "the infinitude of the private man." ([Source][1]) [1]: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ralph_Waldo_Emerson
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