Ralph Waldo Emerson and Walt Whitman emphasize the importance of living true to yourself and developing complete self-acceptance. To live a genuine life and completely accept who you are, you must understand your identity and your sense of self. In Self-Reliance, Emerson explains that your identity and your sense of self are spiritual. Whitman argues, in Song of Myself, that your identity and sense of self are based on both your soul and your body. While both Emerson and Whitman allow for intimate connections and friendships, Emerson encourages people to have relationships with a select few, whereas Whitman encourages people to connect with everyone and anyone, due to their different views of self. In general, both Emerson and Whitman highlight …show more content…
Emerson believes self is spiritual and that your identity is found in your soul. He does not highlight the physical aspects of self, he instead just focuses on what is on the inside. Emerson states, “the soul raised over passion beholds identity and eternal causation, perceives the self-existence of Truth and Right, and calms itself with knowing that all things go well” (Emerson 29). Emerson is illustrating that the soul contains your identity, and therefore, your sense of self. Emerson is also explaining that the soul sees the truth, which Emerson believes is the key to living true to yourself as everyone is better off if they follow their own truths. When people follow their own truths, they are “safe at last” meaning they are living the way they are supposed to live (Emerson 31). In other parts of his essay, Emerson says that the soul is light, that the relation of the soul to the divine spirit is pure, and that the soul “becomes.” Emerson consistently provokes a positive connotation for the word soul because your soul is the most important part that makes you who you are, as it contains your …show more content…
Whereas Emerson believes the self strictly exists in your soul, Whitman believes that sense of self is found in both your soul and your body. Whitman sees your soul and body as a point of connection and that you cannot have one without the other and that the two are equal. For instance, Whitman says, “I have said that the soul is not more than the body, And I have said that that body is not more than the soul, And nothing, not God is greater to one than one’s-self is” (Whitman 51). Whitman is illustrating that the soul and the body are equal to one another and that one is not more important than the other. Therefore, he does not agree with Emerson that the two souls must be on the same spiritual level because you can connect to anyone who has a body and since everyone has a body, you can and should connect to everyone. The last part of this quote also reinforces the importance of self-acceptance and your sense of self because nothing, not even God, is greater than yourself. He also continuously sees himself in others and identifies with everyone throughout his poem, showing the importance of relationships and connectedness which arises from his belief that the self is both soul and body. Overall, self and identity are intriguing topics that many people want to know more about. Everyone wants to know who he or she is, and your identity allows you to understand yourself better. This is
Emerson had a view that man should stand out and not to be like everyone else. He also believed that no one should be a follower, everyone
Exercising your own ideals can be perceived as being rebellious in every society at time. People are expected to act, think, and behave in a way that safeguards everyone’s contentment. Ralph Waldo Emerson has a different view on this matter, in his essay Self-Reliance, he urges every individual to believe in their divine ideal and not to conform to society and its projections. In Emerson’s essay “Self-Reliance”, he urges for every human being to rely on their own intelligence and the genius within to make decision for themselves and to be their true selves.
He says that “The spirit of God is the brother of my own,” meaning that God, the divine creator, the person who stresses, ‘Love thy neighbor,” is his brother, and all people’s brother which indirectly suggests that everyone love each other and take care of each other because we are family. Whitman then goes on, saying that while America is great, life is not perfect, as everyone face challenges and tough times in our lives, “It is not upon you alone the dark patches fall/ The dark threw its patches down upon me also,” (Whitman 12). He discusses the fact that while America is an ideal society where people love each other, life is not so perfect, as the hardships we face are difficult to overcome.
Many people rely on the opinions of others, never truly stopping to personally consider the subject at hand. Ralph Waldo Emerson, an impactful American writer, wrote a piece entitled Self- Reliance. In Self-Reliance, Emerson’s purpose is to promote ideas of individualistic thinking. Emerson uses strong, rhetorical strategies, such as figurative language, allusions, and complex syntax and parallelism to effectively persuade his audience to trust their own thoughts.
This essay, Self-Reliance, is very insightful for its time, and many of the themes written are still relevant today. These allusions used here were put together to further explain his main point on trusting one’s genius. This ignites people to become brave, and trust themselves more, rather than being afraid of their own thoughts and mind. After reading, people may even embrace their thoughts and run with their genius. Emerson again backs up his original statement, but instead uses analogy to express how society rejects individuality, but you must be brave enough to be your own part of this group.
One of such maxims is “Nothing is at last sacred but the integrity of your own mind.” This maxim, while ironically mocking the hold of religion upon the society of the time, also serves to display Emerson’s values on the originality of one’s thoughts. In literal translation, the maxim states, “The only sacred thing
In the piece “Self Reliance” by Ralph Waldo Emerson, one of Americas most influential thinkers, Emerson talks about the subject of individuality. Using many different rhetorical strategies, he makes his perspective on the subject loud and clear by using personification, alliteration and analogy. “The eye was placed where one ray shall fall, that it might testify ray shall fall, that it might testify of that particular ray. Bravely let him speak the utmost syllable of his confession” (Emerson). Emerson uses personification, giving “the eye” the ability to talk and confess such as a human would.
The theme of the essay “Self Reliance” written by Emerson is for beings to not focus on those of others or subside his/her values to fit in with our society, for true geniuses comes from within and are made with their own heart and mind. His idea of self-reliance differs from that of the norm in that he doesn’t encourage those to mix into selfish ways but to be open and proud of their own individuality for that is the true key to life itself. Emerson’s idea is similar to the common use in that he encourages those to not depend on others to define his/her identity. 2. Emerson’s use of figurative language encourages his readers to view his ideas in a clearer and more emphasized perspective.
It serves as a powerful testament that genuine happiness does not reside within the relentless pursuit of material wealth, but rather in the cultivation of authentic human connections and the discovery of one's true self. As Ralph Waldo Emerson wisely stated, "The only person you are destined to become is the person you decide to be," urging us to prioritize authenticity and inner fulfillment over the seductive illusions of external
It is common for a person to admire the stars in the sky. Their brightness and arrangement is a fascinating sight, of course. On the other hand, people tend to forget or plainly ignore what is right under their feet. In “Song of Myself,” Walt Whitman focused on what he thought was truly important, details of the green grass. Whitman wrote, “I believe a leaf of grass is no less than the journey work of the stars” (663).
In Walt Whitman 's "Song of Myself," the author desires to encompass the American identity within one poem, embarking on a
Ralph Waldo Emerson and Walt Whitman emphasize the importance of living true to yourself and developing complete self-acceptance. To live true to yourself and completely accept who you are, you must understand your identity and your sense of self. In Self-Reliance, Emerson explains that your identity and your sense of self is spiritual. Whitman argues, in Song of Myself, that your identity and sense of self is based on both your soul and your body. While both Emerson and Whitman allow for intimate connections and friendships, Emerson encourages people to have relationships with a select few, whereas Whitman encourages people to connect with everyone and anyone, due to their different views of self.
By doing this Whitman introduces himself and at the same time identifies with the reader. He also states that he should be celebrated not only by himself, but also by the reader because they are the same. He also gives off a feeling that his writing is true and good, we get the feeling he is one of us and at the same time a poet. This leads to comparing Whitman with a preacher or public speaker of some sort, he wishes to be
Emerson emphasizes, “what I must do is all that concerns me, not what the people think... It is easy in the world to live after the world’s opinion... but the great man is he who
In this grand poem, Whitman glorifies the unity of all people and life. He embraces the geographical diversity as well as the diversity of culture, work, as well as sexuality or beliefs. Whitman’s influence sets American dreams of freedom, independence, and self-fulfillment, and changes them for larger spiritual meaning. Whitman appreciates hard work as well as being simple and non-egotistical. His major ideas are things such as soul, good health, as well as the love of nature.