ASPECTS OF MODERNISM IN EMERSON?S ?CIRCLES?

While reading ?Circles? I found myself mostly interested in two of the several aspects of modernism that Emerson suggests and although his essay is rather repetitive it conveyed some very significant ideas about pragmatism. Emerson further stresses the great importance of individualism in another one of his essays called ?Self-Reliance?. Speak with latent conviction, and it shall be the universal sense; for the inmost in due time becomes the outmost?? (p. They are all necessary in order for the circle to develop further and further as the process is a never ending one. This is a very significant aspect of modernism. In other words, Emerson suggests that there are no set truths, beliefs or ideas necessarily ?if we appeal to consciousness? because consciousness is alterable and in a constant state of change. This statement adds further conviction to his ideas in ?Circles? and clearly demonstrates Emerson?s modernist approach. With the idea of alterable truth and a constant state of change Emerson tackles key aspects of pragmatism; we and our lives are constantly seeking to expand our circles from their current state, and seeking new possibilities, truths and hopes then becomes a process that repeats itself to no end. The awareness and alertness of one?s mind that is suggested here should always be present, ties in nicely with the idea of the horizontal hierarchy of the human body. To further develop this aspect, Emerson states that ?There are no fixtures to men, if we appeal to consciousness? (p. The most complex, the mind, stands at the top of the ladder and with it logic and reason in man?s thought process.