Transcendental and Anti Transcendental Movements

             During the New England Renaissance period of 1840-1855, literature underwent two very
             distinct movements known as Transcendentalism and Anti-Transcendentalism. Both movements
             were very influential and consisted of authors such as Ralph Waldo Emerson (Transcendentalist)
             and Nathaniel Hawthorne (Anti-Transcendentalist). Concentrating their ideas on human nature
             and intuition, rather than on logic and reason, both these movements served as a flourishing revolt
             The Transcendental movement focused its ideas on the essential unity of creation, the pure
             goodness of humanity and in individual intuition as the highest source of knowledge, rather than
             sensory experience. Optimism dominated people's thoughts and was shown in the ideas of the
             Transcendentalists. The Transcendentalists believed deeply in human potential and in the purity of
             Nature. Truth, they believed, was also reflected in Nature and how it made you feel, and Nature
             was a reflection of the beauty of human nature. They focused on the possibilities of the human
             spirit and the capability of it reaching the "Over Soul". The "Over Soul" is the so-called state in
             which all beings (Nature, God, and Humanity) are spiritually united. During this movement,
             individualism, self-reliance, and rejection of traditional authority were also highly stressed. A
             literary work which reflects the Transcendental ideas is Ralph Waldo Emerson's "Self-Reliance".
             Emerson's quotes display the reader a clear image of ideas which Transcendentalists believed in.
             In "Self-Reliance,"written by Ralph Waldo Emerson, the Transcendental philosophy of life
             is highly stressed. "Self Reliance" focuses its theme around the Transcendental idea of
             individualism. "..That imitation is suicide", a quote from "Self-Reliance", shows the reader that
             transcendentalists stressed the individual rather than conforming to soc
             ...

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Transcendental and Anti Transcendental Movements. (1969, December 31). In MegaEssays.com. Retrieved 13:11, March 28, 2024, from https://www.megaessays.com/viewpaper/55980.html