ENGLISH 11 AP
STUDY GUIDE: The Transcendentalist
Emerson, Thoreau and Melville
1. In Moby-Dick, why does Captain Ahab seek vengeance against the white whale?
2. How does Ahab persuade the crew to help him find the whale in Moby-Dick?
3. In Moby-Dick, what does the gold coin symbolize for the crew?
4.In Moby-Dick, who continually tries to make Ahab call off his mission of revenge?
5.In Moby-Dick, what relationship between Ahab and Moby-Dick does this passage symbolize?
How can the prisoner reach outside except by thrusting through the wall? To me, the white whale is
that wall, shoved near to me. Sometimes I think there's naught beyond.
6.In Moby-Dick, what is the symbolic meaning of Ahab having his crew drink from their weapons?
7.In Moby-Dick, why is it symbolic for Ahab to compare himself with his ship's mast?
8. In Moby-Dick, what does the whale symbolize to Ahab in this passage?
Retribution, swift vengeance, eternal malice were in his whole aspect … his forehead smote the
ship's starboard bow, till men and timbers reeled.
9.How does a reader challenge any text?
10.What is a basic Transcendentalist idea found in the selection from Nature?
11.Which of these suggests a meaning for Emerson's words from Nature: “In the woods is perpetual youth”?
12. Which of the following expresses a key idea of the selection from Self-Reliance?
a.
b.
c.
d.
Be guided by the will of the majority.
It is wise to try to be like others.
The individual mind is the only guide.
Social customs are necessary for peace.
13.Which of these character traits, as described in Self-Reliance, is a key element of Transcendentalism?
a.
b.
c.
d.
being like others when possible
teaching others to be like you
always being your own person
trying to become a genius
14.In “Concord Hymn,” what does Emerson mean by “the shot heard round the world”?
15.Which Transcendentalist belief is reflected in this passage from “Concord Hymn”?
Spirit, that made those heroes dare / To die, and leave their children free, / Bid Time and Nature
gently spare / The shaft we raise to them and thee.
a.
b.
c.
d.
the importance of the individual
the unity of nature and humanity
the limitation of human senses
the presence of an Over-Soul
ENGLISH 11 AP
STUDY GUIDE: The Transcendentalist
16.In “The Snowstorm,” which element of Transcendentalism does Emerson depict by comparing the north
wind to a human being?
a.
b.
c.
d.
the seeking of truth
the unity of humans and nature
the importance of self-reliance
the limitation of human senses
17.At the beginning of the selection from Walden, what does Thoreau allow himself to do through his
imagination?
18.What part of Thoreau's philosophy is found in this passage from Walden?
Our life is frittered away by details. An honest man has hardly need to count more than his ten
fingers, or in extreme cases he may add his ten toes, and lump the rest.
19.What is a regular element of Thoreau's style in Walden?
a.
b.
c.
d.
to ask questions and then answer them
to state main ideas only once
to jump quickly from idea to idea
to expand on personal experiences
20.Which element of Thoreau's style is shown in these passages from Walden?
Simplicity, simplicity, simplicity! I say, let your affairs be as two or three, and not a hundred or a
thousand …. Simplify, simplify. Instead of three meals a day, if it be necessary eat but one; instead
of a hundred dishes, five ….
21.Which of Thoreau's main beliefs is expressed in this passage from Walden?
If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different
drummer. Let him step to the music which hears, however measured or far away.
22.What situation caused Thoreau to write Civil Disobedience?
23.What does Thoreau call for, in terms of government, at the conclusion of this selection from Civil
Disobedience?
24.What is Thoreau's central idea in Civil Disobedience?
a.
b.
c.
d.
the ability of government to control others
the importance of trade in government
the ability of people to govern themselves
the importance of armies in government
Essay
25. Do you think Captain Ahab in Moby-Dick is a character who is free? Does he act as a free person
and think as a free person because he can sail when he wishes? Or does his obsession keep him in a
kind of prison? Write a brief essay to give your response to these questions. Use at least two
examples from Moby-Dick to support your response.
ENGLISH 11 AP
STUDY GUIDE: The Transcendentalist
26. As you read Moby-Dick, you encountered many uses of symbols: Moby-Dick, the wind, the ship's
mast, the gold coin, the sea, and so on. What do you think the character of Ahab symbolizes? Write a
brief essay about how Ahab is used as a symbol, perhaps of a struggle of some kind. Provide at least
two examples from the text. Remember that a symbol can have more than one meaning.
27. In Civil Disobedience, how does Thoreau compare governments to people, in terms of getting things
done? Does he think governments are useful? Write a brief essay to express Thoreau's beliefs. Use at
least two examples from Civil Disobedience to support your ideas.
28. In Walden, Thoreau says, “I left the woods for as good a reason as I went there. Perhaps it seemed to
me that I had several more lives to live, and could not spare any more time for that one. It is
remarkable how easily and insensibly we fall into a particular route, and make a beaten track for
ourselves.” What do you think he means by falling into “a particular route”? Why does he see doing
the same thing over and over as a problem? Write a brief essay to express your opinions. Use at least
two examples from Walden to support your opinions.