Name __________________________
Date _______________
Hour _______
What is Transcendentalism?
http://www.ushistory.org/us/26f.asp
DIRECTIONS: Print this sheet. Use this website to answer the following questions (20 points)
Put in your own word the “simple concept” that the first two paragraphs use to explain/define
transcendentalism:
Ralph Waldo Emerson was the leader of The Transcendental Club. What is his background and what
beliefs was he supporting?
Also in The Transcendental Club, Henry David Thoreau is described in this site as “the most interesting
character by far.” What does the site tell us about how Thoreau lived his transcendental beliefs?
Sum up the conclusions in the last paragraph here.
Now choose a different website(s) and look up the key points of Transcendentalism. Try any of the
following search terms and jot down the main principles on the back of the page.
Ten Key Tenets of Transcendentalism
Definition of transcendentalism
Transcendentalism
Major principles of Transcendentalism
What’s most important to transcendentalists?