"Every man for himself." Although simple in context, this expression encompasses a rather complicated topic. Throughout the history of America, the debate over whether an individual can survive dependent on his or her own competence has resulted in much controversy and contradiction. ...

Transcendentalism was a movement in philosophy, literature, and religion that emerged and was popular in nineteenth-century New England because of a need to redefine man and his place in the world in response to a new and changing society. The industrial revolution, universities, westward expansion,...