Transcendentalism: The Movement
and the Creation of an American Identity
A Paper
submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements of
United States History
Minho Daniel Kim
Department of History
St. Albans School
Washington, D.C.
April 19, 2010
2
By the mid 19th century, America was no longer a nation in its infancy. It had defeated
the British in the War of 1812, and under Andrew Jackson’s administration, successfully
relocated the Indians out of the Eastern United States. America had finally established itself as an
independent nation, and it was a bright new nation full of hope, land, and opportunities. A
Market Revolution was taking place: in only a few decades, railroads, steamboats, canals, and
telegraphs were invented and rapidly utilized all across America.1 In addition to the creation of a
far more efficient infrastructure in the East, the large masses of beautiful, bountiful, and
untouched land in the West were being settled under the doctrine of Manifest Destiny, which
stated that it was American destiny to expand all the way to the Pacific. To anyone who took the
time to stand back and observe, it was quite clear that America was growing quite rapidly. Yet,
with this immense growth came immense optimism, which helped usher in a new American
movement called Romanticism. In New England, however, an even more specific form of
Romanticism was born --- Transcendentalism. A movement led by the well known Ralph Waldo
Emerson, the Transcendentalist movement and the writings associated with it single-handedly
created the American Renaissance, and changed the face of American culture forever.
However, a literary movement clearly does not come out of nowhere;
Transcendentalism’s origins lay within part of an even larger movement than Romanticism: the
Second Great Awakening. The Second Great Awakening was a religious movement which took
place during the first half of the 19th century, in which Americans tended to shift away from
predominately Unitarian beliefs towards New Divinity theologies.2 These New Divinity
theologies were greatly popularized by traveling, Bible-thumping, evangelical firebrands
1
Eric Foner. Give Me Liberty! An American History (New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2008), 306.
George B. Tindall. “An American Renaissance: Religion, Romanticism, and Reform.” America: A Narrative
History. http://wwnorton.com/college/history/america7/content/multimedia/ch13/documents_01.htm.
2
3
including Charles Finney and Peter Cartwright, who promoted a far more emotional approach to
Christianity than the scientific, analytical one that was so popular at the time.3 As Ralph Waldo
Emerson said in 1841, “The doctrine of Reform had never had such scope as the present hour.”4
These new and radical beliefs in changes in the American psyche would eventually reach New
England, where the Transcendentalist movement was born.
More specifically, Transcendentalism was created at Harvard College. At the time,
Harvard College had become secularized by the Unitarians, but was still the “Unitarian Vatican”
under the rule of the Reverend John Kirkland (President) and Reverend Henry Ware Sr. (Sr.
Professor of Divinity).5 Simply put, Unitarianism was an offshoot of Calvinism, and a search for
divine meaning through intellect, calm rationalism, and a scientific view of the universe.6 One
example of the Unitarian approach to religion was the recitation, a teaching approach used at
Harvard which required the student to simply memorize and regurgitate, but not to prove any
true understanding of what he had just recited.7 Transcendentalism began as a response to the
cold, sober, and intellectualism that defined the Unitarian church. Two famous students at
Harvard at the time were George Ripley, the founder of the Brook Farm, and Ralph Waldo
Emerson, arguably the most famous Transcendentalist of all time. Even professors seemed to
rebel against the overtly rational teachings of Harvard. In 1833, Frederic Henry Hedge, once
professor of logic at Harvard, published an article in The Christian Examiner entitled
George B. Tindall. “An American Renaissance: Religion, Romanticism, and Reform.” America: A Narrative
History. http://wwnorton.com/college/history/america7/content/multimedia/ch13/documents_01.htm.
4
Ibid.
5
The Fore Runner. “A Brief History of Christian Influence in US Colleges.”
http://forerunner.com/forerunner /forerunner/X0100_Christianity_in_U.S..html; “Transcendentalism.” New World
Encyclopedia. New World Encyclopedia. New World Encyclopedia, 2010. Mon. 15 Feb. 2010.
http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry /Transcendentalism.
6
Ibid.
7
Ibid.
33
4
"Coleridge," in which he expounded upon and defended Transcendentalist beliefs, proposing that
a “correspondence” was present between internal human reality and external spiritual reality.8
They desired something more, and believed that there was state that eludes humans in the
physical world, but can be grasped though intuition and deep soul searching, creating a true
connection with God.
While Transcendentalism is oftentimes viewed as a movement with purely American
roots, Emerson and his contemporaries actually drew their ideas from the writings of many
different sources: Indian and Chinese scriptures, Swedenborg, Kant, and English Romanticists
like Coleridge and Woodsworth. 9 Transcendentalism drew its basic idealistic beliefs from the
Europeans, and its more mystical beliefs from Asian cultures. Indian writings in particular
played an important role in Transcendentalism. Emerson was infatuated with Indian writings,
and read as much Indian philosophic literature as he could. For instance, in his journal he once
wrote, “I owed a magnificent day to the Bhagavat-Gita. It was the first of books; it was as if an
empire spake to us…large, serene, consistent, the voice of an old intelligence which in another
age and climate had pondered and thus disposed of the same questions that exercise us.”10
Thoreau was just as fascinated, and read the Dharma Sastra when he was only twenty- four.11 In
fact, when Thoreau embarked on his famous sojourn on Walden Pond, he brought with him a
copy of the Bhagavad Gita, an Indian masterpiece which describes a dialogue between two of
the Mahabharata’s central characters, Krisna and Arjuna, who discuss and reveal how a true
“Transcendentalism.” New World Encyclopedia. New World Encyclopedia. New World Encyclopedia, 2010. Mon.
15 Feb. 2010. http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry /Transcendentalism.
9
Ibid.
10
Edward Waldo Emerson and Forbes Waldo Emerson. eds., Journals of Ralph Waldo Emerson, 10 vols. (Boston:
Houghton Mifflin, 1909-1914), 7:241-42 and 7:511.
11
“Transcendentalism.” New World Encyclopedia. New World Encyclopedia. New World Encyclopedia, 2010. Mon.
15 Feb. 2010. http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry /Transcendentalism.
8
5
Hindu ought to live life. 12 Even Whitman was influenced, (most likely through Thoreau) and
wrote a poem entitled, “Passage to India,” which describes India as a magical and mystical land,
and writes, “O you temples fairer than lilies pour'd over by the rising sun!/O you fables spurning
the known, eluding the hold of the known, mounting to heaven!”13 One clear indication of the
great impact that Indian philosophy had on Transcendentalism was the Transcendentalists’ direct
usage of the Indian belief in “maya,” which in Hinduism is essentially illusion, a cloud over
one’s consciousness which prevents one from reaching enlightenment and realizing that the
distinction between self and God is non-existent.14 As Emerson himself once said, “I become a
transparent eye-ball. I am nothing. I see all. The currents of the Universal Being circulate
through me; I am part or parcel of God.”15
As for the European influences, Kant and Swedenborg were two writers who helped mold
Transcendentalist beliefs. Immanuel Kant was perhaps the biggest, for in Emerson’s essay
entitled “The Transcendentalist,” he said:
It is well known to most of my audience that the Idealism of the present
day acquired the name of Transcendental, from the use of that term by
Immanuel Kant… who replied to the skeptical philosophy of Locke, and
insisted that there is nothing in the intellect which was not previously in the experience of
the sense…by showing that there was a very important class of ideas… that these were
intuitions of the mind itself; and he denominated them Transcendental forms.16
“Transcendentalism.” New World Encyclopedia. New World Encyclopedia. New World Encyclopedia, 2010. Mon.
15 Feb. 2010. http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry /Transcendentalism.
13
Swami B.G Narasingha and Steven Rosen. “East meets West: Oriental Seeds in Occidental Soil.” Vedic Science.
http://www.vedicsciences.net/articles/east-meets-west. html#Emerson-Ralph-Waldo.
14
Jayaram V. “Delusion--- The Power of Maya and the Nature of Reality.” Hinduwebsite.
http://www.hinduwebsite.com/hinduism/h_maya.asp.
15
Ralph Waldo Emerson, Nature, in The Essential Writings of Ralph Waldo Emerson, ed. Brooks Atkinson (New
York: Random House, 2000), 6.
16
Ralph Waldo Emerson. The Transcendentalist, in The Essential Writings of Ralph Waldo Emerson. ed. Brooks
Atikinson. (New York: Random House, 2000), 6.
12
6
In his essay, Emerson cited Kant as a great influence on Transcendentalism, for he was the one
who first expounded a belief in the great power of human intuition, a philosophy which the
Transcendentalists believed was the key to enlightenment. As for Swedenborg, Coleridge, and
Wordsworth, all three played their own roles in shaping the movement. Emerson was an avid
reader of all Swedenborg’s works, and his idea called “correspondences,” which are the
relationships between spiritual and natural realities, influenced Emerson’s 1836 book Nature,
which is considered by many to be the watershed moment for Transcendentalism.17
In fact, that same year, the Transcendental Club was founded in Cambridge,
Massachusetts, September 8th, 1836, by Emerson and several of his friends.18 Over time, it grew
to include people like Henry Thoreau and Margaret Fuller. Transcendentalism would eventually
come to dominate, and even define the American literary scene in the mid-1800s, a golden
period known as the American Renaissance. A term originally coined in F.O. Matthiessen’s 1941
book, Authoring the American Renaissance: Art and Expression in the Age of Emerson and
Whitman, the American Renaissance referred to the mid-1800s proliferation of many of
America’s best pieces of literature, which included Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter,
Herman Melville’s Moby Dick, Thoreau’s Walden, Whitman’s Leaves of Grass, Emily
Barry C Halterman. “Swedenborg’s Influence on Ralph Waldo Emerson.” Information Swedenborg.
http://www.swedenborg.ca/who-was-swedenborg/swedenborg-influence-on-emerson.html.; “Transcendentalism.”
New World Encyclopedia. New World Encyclopedia. New World Encyclopedia, 2010. Mon. 15 Feb. 2010.
http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry /Transcendentalism.
18
“Transcendentalism.” New World Encyclopedia. New World Encyclopedia. New World Encyclopedia, 2010. Mon.
15 Feb. 2010. http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry /Transcendentalism.
17
7
Dickinson’s Complete Letters and Poems, and even Harriet Beecher Stowe’s Uncle Tom’s
Cabin.19
The influence of Transcendentalism on all of the aforementioned works is quite clear.
For instance, one famous Transcendentalist was Walt Whitman, the renowned American poet.
When Whitman first published his book Leaves of Grass (1855), critics had nothing for Whitman
but insults and snubs.20 The biggest controversy arose over the highly sensual overtone of the
book, which was descried as obscene and offensive. However, Ralph Waldo Emerson had a
completely different response from the general American public: he wrote a letter directly to
Whitman himself, and told him that Leaves of Grass was “the most extraordinary piece of wit
and wisdom that America has yet contributed.”21 In return, Whitman was far from ungrateful for
this rare but important praise. He returned Emerson’s letters with one of his own, in which he
also praised Emerson, and even cited him as the inspiration for his works when he wrote:
Receive, dear master, these statements… for all the young men, and for an
earnest that we know none before you, but the best following you; and we
demand to take your name into our keeping…and that we understand what
you have indicated…. Those shore you found. I say you have led The
States there --- have led me there. I say that none has ever done, or ever can
do, a greater deed for The States than your deed.22
Quite clearly, Whitman found Emerson to be a great inspiration, a leader of a Transcendentalist
Ann Woodlief. “American Romanticism (or the American Renaissance).” American Transcendentalism Web.
http://www.vcu.edu/engweb/eng372/intro.htm.; Hampson, Thomas. “The American Renaissance and
Transcendentalism.” I Hear America Singing. http://pbs.com/wnet/ihas/icon/transcend.html
20
Walt Whitman. “A Letter to Ralph Waldo Emerson.” Annals of American History.
http://america.eb.com/america/article?articleId=385962.
21
Ralph Waldo Emerson. “Letter extolling Whitman's poetry, 21 July 1855.” Foregrounds and Apprenticeships.
http://www.classroomelectric.org/volume1/belasco/whitman-emerson.htm#return.
22
Walt Whitman. “A Letter to Ralph Waldo Emerson.” Annals of American History.
http://america.eb.com/america/article?articleId=385962.
19
8
movement which he believed in. As Whitman himself said, “I was simmering, simmering,
simmering. Emerson brought me to a boil.”23
Another important American writer whom the Transcendentalists influenced was Harriet
Beecher Stowe, the “little lady who started [the] big war,” and author of the 1852 sensation
Uncle Tom’s Cabin.24 This sensational book is arguably one of the most important books in
American literature. Its importance lies in the fact that it was the first book to truly tackle the
social issues of the day, and to try to affirm the power of Christianity and redemption. The plot
primarily revolves around the protagonist, a middle-aged slave named Uncle Tom who is also a
highly devout Christian. He is sold off to a cruel and even satanic plantation owner named
Simon Legree, who resolves to break Uncle Tom’s faith. Tom, however, keeps reading his Bible,
and refuses to lose faith. Eventually, Tom is killed, but not before forgiving the overseers who
kill him, and converting them to Christianity.25 The book itself is greatly influenced by
Transcendentalism, for the Transcendentalists were among the minority opposed to slavery: they
believed that slavery limited a man’s God-given right to individualism, freedom, and the ability
to have a spiritual connection with God.26 In addition, Uncle Tom acted not purely through hard
logic and reasoning (if he did, he probably would have survived), but through his intuition and
faith, in order to make his decisions and ultimately become closer with God. Towards the end of
American Transcendentalism Web. “Walt Whitman 1819-1892”
http://www.vcu.edu/engweb/transcendentalism/roots/legacy/whitman/index.html
24
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. “Harriet Beecher Stove/Uncle Tom’s Cabin.” The Classic Text: Traditions
and Interpretations. http://www4.uwm.edu/libraries/ special/exhibits/clastext/clspg149.ctm.
25
“Harriet Beecher Stowe.” New World Encyclopedia. New World Encyclopedia.
New World Encyclopedia, 2010. Mon. 15 March. 2010.
http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Harriet_Beecher_Stowe.
26
Leonard P Liggio. “Transcendentalists vs. Slavery.” The Online Library of Liberty.
http://app.libraryofliberty.org/?option=com_statccx+&staticfile=show.php%3F
title=1300&chapter=100946&layout=html&Itemid=27.
23
9
the book, as he tells some of the children to run away, as a furious Legree comes near, they ask
him to come with them, to which he responds:
No, time was when I would, but the Lord's given me a work among these yer poor souls,
and I'll stay with 'em and bear my cross with 'em till the end. It's different with you; it's a
snare to you,--it's more 'n you can stand,--and you'd better go if you can. 27
Even in the face of certain danger, Uncle Tom sacrifices himself courageously, and chooses to
trust in the Lord instead of making the decision to run away with the children. Even with all the
adversity he has retained, the noble Uncle Tom retains his faith, and stays true to his beliefs.
Ultimately, he dies at the hands of two overseers, yet forgives them before he dies. Both men,
ashamed of what they have done, become Christians. Thus, it becomes clear to any layman that
Uncle’s Tom Cabin, a crown jewel of the American Renaissance, was a heavily
Transcendentalist work, for the entire book serves to evoke sympathy for the wronged
Transcendental martyr, Uncle Tom.
However, as influential as Transcendentalism was, there were still people discontent with
its teachings, and thus Transcendentalism catalyzed the creation of counter-movement called
Dark Romanticism, which is considered by most to be “Anti-Transcendentalism.” Dark
Romanticism was a movement formed by Edgar Allen Poe, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Emily
Dickinson, and Herman Melville, all of whom were prolific writers.28 In addition to their
mastery of the pen, they all had another quality in common: they all found Transcendentalism to
be far too optimistic, and were far more skeptical of man’s innate qualities, believing that they
tended to veer closer towards sin and self-destruction than virtue and divinity.29 Also, while the
Transcendentalists viewed nature as a divine and benevolent mediator, the Dark Romantics
27
Harriett Beecher Stowe, Uncle Tom’s Cabin. (New York: The Modern Library, 2001) 564-565.
“Dark Romanticism.” New World Encyclopedia. New World Encyclopedia. New World Encyclopedia, 2010.
Mon. 15 March. 2010. http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Dark_romanticism.
29
Megan Bailey. “The Dark Romantics of Literature.” associatedcontent: The people’s media company.
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/1603/the_dark_romantics_of_literature.html?cat=38.
28
10
viewed nature as a mysterious and dark world, rarely revealing any truth to men, which would
oftentimes be of an evil nature.30 In other words, Dark Romantics were, as the name implies,
darker, more pessimistic, and more cynical versions of the Romantic Transcendentalists who had
become so popular in the 19th century.
Of the four famous Dark Romantics, Nathaniel Hawthorne was the most connected to the
original Transcendentalist movement. Most famous for his masterpiece, The Scarlet Letter,
Hawthorne was actually one of the original shareholders in “The Brook Farm Institute of
Agriculture and Education,” (1841) which was a Transcendentalist experiment in utopian living.
31
According to the articles of agreement, which was signed by all who participated, the purpose
of Brook Farm was very idealistic:
to combine the thinker and the worker, to guarantee the greatest
mental freedom, and to prepare a society of liberal, cultivated persons,
whose relations with each other would permit a more wholesome and
simpler life than could be led amid the pressure of competitive institutions.32
In other words, the Transcendentalists were trying to create a utopia. Unfortunately, while Brook
Farm did manage to prosper for several years, by 1847 it was no longer financially sustainable,
and in 1849 the farm and the surrounding property were sold.33 By this time, Nathaniel
Hawthorne was long gone. In fact, he had left after only six months, due to his inability to write
at Brook Farm. However, he would later go on to write a romance novel entitled The Blithedale
Romance, which is a satire of his short-lived experience at Brook Farm, and the
“Dark Romanticism.” New World Encyclopedia. New World Encyclopedia. New World Encyclopedia, 2010.
Mon. 15 March. 2010. http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Dark_romanticism.
31
"Brook Farm." Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica, 2010. Tues.
16 Feb. 2010. http://www.search.eb.com/eb/article-9016625.
32
Ibid.
33
Ibid.
30
11
Transcendentalists that occupied it.34 In his satire, Blithedale eventually fails; not because of
financial problems, but because of the egotistical conflicts between the members of the
community themselves.35 The Blithedale Romance is clear evidence of the influence that
Transcendentalism and Brook Farm played on Hawthorne, and his resulting transformation of
belief towards Dark Romanticism, a philosophy so artfully expressed in his contribution to the
American Renaissance, The Scarlet Letter.
Yet, Transcendentalism did not influence only literature (although one could say
literature indirectly influences culture). The ideas of the Transcendentalist movement promoted a
reexamination of American society in general, and directly impacted both the anti-slavery
movement (Uncle Tom’s Cabin) and the women’s rights movement.36 Margaret Fuller was
among the most prominent Transcendentalist activists of the time, contributing greatly towards
the promotion of women’s rights, and making sure the issue stayed fresh in antebellum America.
Margaret Fuller was a large part of the Transcendentalist movement from the very start,
and was among the most respected individuals of her time. Born in Massachusetts in 1910, it was
clear she was bright ever since her early childhood. As a six-year old, she studied English, Latin,
math, history, music, and modern languages, all at the same time.37 With all her genius, however,
she was also quite socially awkward her whole life, and when she eventually met Emerson, he
was initially put off by her “extreme plainness.” Thankfully, over time, Fuller became friendlier,
and the two eventually came to be excellent friends, resulting in long friendly visits to Emerson’s
34
Nathaniel Hawthorne. The Blithedale Romance. 1894. Google Books. March 2010.
http://books.google.com/book?id=wmcRAAAAYAAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_v2_summary_r&cad=0#v
=onepage&q=&f=false.
35
Ibid.
36
“Transcendentalism.” New World Encyclopedia. New World Encyclopedia. New World Encyclopedia, 2010. Mon.
15 Feb. 2010. http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry /Transcendentalism.
37
Joan Goodwin. “Margaret Fuller.” Dictionary of Unitarian and Universalist Biography.
http://www25.uua.org/uuhhs/duub/index.html.
12
home, Fuller’s involvement in the Brook Farm experiment, and her agreement to become editor
of the Transcendentalist journal, The Dial.38 It was there that she wrote her pioneering essay,
“The Great Lawsuit: Man vs. Men and Woman vs. Women,” which led to a tour championing
women’s rights, a book (Summer on the Lakes, in 1843), and eventually a job as a writer for the
New York Tribune. 39
At the Tribune, Fuller finally had the means to send out her battle cry to a broader
audience, and in 1845 she lengthened “The Great Lawsuit” and renamed it “Women in the 19th
Century.”40 In her latest piece, Fuller pointed out just how weak women’s right were in America,
citing numerous other countries, such as Germany, Spain, and even Ancient Greece, pointing out
the greater equality granted there.41 This essay would turn out to be her masterpiece, and was, as
Horace Greeley said, “the bravest, broadest, assertion yet made of what are termed Woman's
Rights."42 Her essay had a profound influence on the women’s rights movement: it gained
respect for women from men, and inspired women to fight for their own rights. In fact, it was no
coincidence that the famous Seneca Falls Convention would take place only three years later, in
1848.43 While it may not be immediately obvious, Fuller’s influence on the American
Renaissance was great, for her own feminist works contributed a radically different, female
Transcendentalist perspective to the primarily male points of view of the time.
In summary, Transcendentalism was a clear indicator of the radical change
occurring in antebellum America. It was a continuation of the increased spread of democracy
American Transcendentalism Web. “[Sarah] Margaret Fuller 1810-1850”
http://vcu.edu/engweb/transcendentalism/authors/fuller/.
39
Ibid.
40
Joan Goodwin. “Margaret Fuller.” Dictionary of Unitarian and Universalist Biography.
http://www25.uua.org/uuhhs/duub/index.html.
41
Margaret Fuller. “Women in the 19th Century.” American Transcendentalism Web.
http://www.vcu.edu/engweb/transcendentalism/authors/fuller/woman1.html.
42
Joan Goodwin. “Margaret Fuller.” Dictionary of Unitarian and Universalist Biography.
http://www25.uua.org/uuhhs/duub/index.html.
43
Ibid.
38
13
that had begun in the Jacksonian era, and the optimistic and romantic views of the American
people. America had finally become comfortable in its own skin, and the outdated, traditional,
and rigid Christian theologies of old, once necessary in the New World, were no longer relevant
to the newest generation. Cold stoicism and scientific thought were no longer popular, and warm
Romanticism and mystical beliefs were all the rage. Transcendentalism had everything most
American people desired, and even provoked a counter-movement that would also contribute
greatly to the American Renaissance.
Some of the greatest American writers, like Emily Dickinson, Edger Allen Poe, and
Herman Melville, were Dark Romantics, Anti-Transcendentalists. The American Renaissance,
considered to be the era in which most of America’s greatest masterpieces were written, was
comprised of entirely Transcendentalist or Anti-Transcendentalist works, works like: The Scarlet
Letter, Moby Dick, Walden, Leaves of Grass, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, “The Raven,” “The American
Scholar,” and all of Dickinson’s poems. In addition to the works themselves, the effects they
had resounded throughout American culture. Uncle Tom’s Cabin was a resounding success, and
it brought the already excited American people into a frenzy about the issue of slavery. Margaret
Fuller and her most famous work, “Women in the 19th Century,” inspired American women to
fight for their rights, and as a trailblazer, broke ground in a movement that would continue far
into the 20th century. All in all, Transcendentalism affected antebellum America in a profound
way. It was fundamental in shaping American identity, and was a powerful response to
Emerson’s call for America to distance itself from its European roots and create a uniquely
American culture, one which would finally “walk on [its] own feet… walk with [its] own
hands… speak with [its] own mind.”44
44
Ralph Waldo Emerson, The American Scholar, in The Essential Writings of Ralph Waldo Emerson, ed. Brooks
Atkinson (New York: Random House, 2000), 59.
14
Bibliography
Primary Sources:
Fuller, Margaret. “Women in the 19th Century.” American Transcendentalism Web.
http://www.vcu.edu/engweb/transcendentalism/authors/fuller/woman1.html.
(This is the actual text of Fuller’s essay, and was read over and summarized)
Hawthorne, Nathaniel. The Blithedale Romance. 1894. Google Books. March 2010.
http://books.google.com/books?id=wmcRAAAAYAAJ&printsec=frontcover&so
urce=gbs_v2_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q=&f=false.
(This is the actual text of Hawthorne’s book, and the foreword has a nice
explanation of the book and its context.)
Emerson, Ralph Waldo. Nature, in The Essential Writings of Ralph Waldo Emerson,
ed. Brooks Atkinson (New York: Random House, 2000), 6.
(Nature is an important text, and has to be read. It was also cited.)
Emerson, Edward Waldo and Emerson, Forbes Waldo, eds., Journals of Ralph Waldo
Emerson, 10 vols. (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1909-1914), 7:241-42 and 7:511.
Emerson, Ralph Waldo. “Letter extolling Whitman's poetry, 21 July 1855.” Foregrounds
and Apprenticeships. http://www.classroomelectric.org/volume1/belasco
/whitman-emerson.htm#return.
(This is the text of the letter in which Emerson extolled Whitman’s Leaves of
Grass)
Emerson, Ralph Waldo. The American Scholar, in The Essential Writings of Ralph Waldo
Emerson, ed. Brooks Atkinson (New York: Random House, 2000), 59.
(One of the greatest works by Emerson, I thought it would be fitting to use as the
last part of my conclusion.)
Emerson, Ralph Waldo. The Transcendentalist, in The Essential Writings of Ralph Waldo
Emerson, ed. Brooks Atkinson (New York: Random House, 2000), 86.
(This essay itself gives a nice summary of what Transcendentalism was, and what
the origins were.)
Stowe, Harriett Beecher. Uncle Tom’s Cabin. New York: The Modern Library, 2001.
Whitman, Walt. “A Letter to Ralph Waldo Emerson.” Annals of American History.
http://america.eb.com/america/article?articleId=385962.
(This letter provides clear evidence that Whitman was truly inspired by
Emerson.)
15
Secondary Sources:
American Transcendentalism Web. “[Sarah] Margaret Fuller: 1810-1850.”
http://www.vcu.edu/engweb/transcendentalism/authors/fuller/
(This website provides a nice biography of Fuller, and goes into depth about
certain parts of her life.)
American Transcendentalism Web.” Walt Whitman 1819-1892.”
http://www.vcu.edu/engweb/transcendentalism/roots/legacy/
whitman/index.html
(Just like Fuller’s website, Whitman’s provides a nice biography.)
“American Renaissance.” Encyclopaedia Brittanica. Encycolpaedia Brittanica Online.
Encyclopædia Britannica, 2010. Thur. 04 March 2010.
http://www.brittanica.com/EBchecked/topic/ 20120/American-Renaissance.
(It is always nice to have an Encyclopedia’s definition of a term.)
Bailey, Megan. “The Dark Romantics of Literature.” associatedcontent: The people’s
media company. http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/1603/the_dark_
romantics_of_literature.html?cat=38
(This article gives a description of the Dark Romantics, who they were, and what
they wrote.)
Bickman, Martin. “An Overview of American Transcendentalism.” American
Transcendentalism Web. http://vcu.edu/engweb/transcendentalism/ideas/
definitionbickman.html
(American Transcendentalism provides a very solid summary of the
Transcendentalist movement.)
"Brook Farm." Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online.
Encyclopædia Britannica, 2010. Tues. 16 Feb. 2010. http://www.search.eb
com/eb/article-9016625
(This article describes Brook Farm and the specifics behind it.)
Campbell, Donna. “American Transcendentalism.” Literary Movements.
http://www.wsu.edu/~campbelld/amlit/amtrans.htm.
(This website provides yet another summary of what Transcendentalism was.)
“Dark Romanticism.” New World Encyclopedia. New World Encyclopedia.
New World Encyclopedia, 2010. Mon. 15 March. 2010.
http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Dark_romanticism.
(This is another Encyclopedia’s definition of Dark Romanticism.)
Foner, Eric. Give Me Liberty! An American History (New York: W.W. Norton &
Company, 2008), 306.
16
Goodwin, Joan. “Margaret Fuller.” Dictionary of Unitarian and Universalist
Biography. http://www25.uua.org/uuhhs/duub/index.html.
(This is another biography of Fuller.)
Halterman, Barry C. “Swedenborg’s Influence on Ralph Waldo Emerson.”
Information Swedenborg. http://www.swedenborg.ca/who-was-swedenborg/
swedenborg-influence-on-emerson.html.
(As the title suggests, this article deals with Swedenborg’s influence on Emerson.)
Hampson, Thomas. “The American Renaissance and Transcendentalism.” I Hear America
Singing. http://pbs.com/wnet/ihas/icon/transcend.html
(This is yet another article about the Transcendentalist movement and its
connections with the American Renaissance.)
“Harriet Beecher Stowe.” New World Encyclopedia. New World Encyclopedia.
New World Encyclopedia, 2010. Mon. 15 March. 2010.
http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Harriet_Beecher_Stowe.
(The Encyclopedia provides a nice summary of Uncle Tom’s Cabin here.)
Liggio, Leonard P. “Transcendentalists vs. Slavery.” The Online Library of Liberty.
http://app.libraryofliberty.org/?option=com_statccx+&staticfile
=show.php%3Ftitle=1300&chapter=100946&layout=html&Itemid=27.
(This article describes the Transcendentalist view on slavery.)
Narasingha, Swami B.G and Rosen, Steven. “East meets West: Oriental Seeds in
Occidental Soil.” Vedic Science. http://www.vedicsciences.net/articles/eastmeets-west. html#Emerson-Ralph-Waldo.
(This article deals with how Eastern culture has influenced Western culture.)
The Fore Runner. “A Brief History of Christian Influence in US Colleges.”
http://forerunner.com/forerunner/X0100_Christianity_in_U.S..html.
(This website provides the information about Harvard and its early religious
orientations.)
Tindall, George B. “An American Renaissance: Religion, Romanticism, and Reform.”
America: A Narrative History. http://wwnorton.com/college/history/america7/
content/multimedia/ch13/documents_01.htm.
(This piece provides some extra information on the American Renaissance.)
“Transcendentalism.” New World Encyclopedia. New World Encyclopedia.
New World Encyclopedia, 2010. Mon. 15 Feb. 2010.
http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Transcendentalism.
(This is yet another article about Transcendentalism as a broad movement.)
17
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. “Harriet Beecher Stove/Uncle Tom’s Cabin.”
The Classic Text: Traditions and Interpretations.
http://www4.uwm.edu/libraries/special/exhibits/clastext/clspg149.ctm.
(This piece describes Uncle Tom’s Cabin, and also provides a summary.)
V, Jayaram. “Delusion--- The Power of Maya and the Nature of Reality.” Hinduwebsite.
http://www.hinduwebsite.com/hinduism/h_maya.asp.
(This article goes into depth about maya.)
Woodlief, Ann. “American Romanticism (or the American Renaissance).” American
Transcendentalism Web. http://www.vcu.edu/engweb/eng372/intro.htm.
(This is yet another article on how the American renaissance and
Transcendentalism were tied.)