Ralph Waldo Emerson

Discussion Questions:

1.) While Emerson's work may seem a strikingly esoteric inclusion for a section on "reform," what connections can we make between social action and the transcendentalist tenet of the divinity of nature and human beings?

2.) How can Emerson's concept of "self-reliance" be usefully applied to the political and economic positions of women and people of color?

3.) Agree or disagree with this quote: "Emerson's and Thoreau's ethic of the individual is an interesting backdrop for discussing the responsibility of the individual to society in a democratic state."

4.) The B.A.A.L. editors tell us about the "context" of Nature:

• The book was "written during a period of rapid economic growth and the emergence of an increasingly strong market economy in the United States" (655).

• They also say on the website that "his work is best contextualized not only within the tenets of transcendentalism and Unitarianism but also within the social and cultural moment of rapid growth, industrialization, and reform that characterized this period."

How do these ideas show up in the Introduction and Chapter I?

5.) Discuss the relationship of the self, or individual, and society in Emerson's essays. Include in your discussion Emerson's apparent view of his audience and readers.

6.) Using the introductions to "American Literature, 1830-1865," and "The Era of Reform," make a list of the connections between Emerson's arguments and the historical context from which they emerged.

7.) Make a list of the tenets of transcendentalism and then correlate each tenet with a social for a reform practice.