Download Transcendentalism Notes

The Scarlet Letter Type I: Society
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In what ways does our society demand we conform
to certain conventions?
What expectations does our society have about how
we
Behave in public
Treat other people
Make a living.
Write your answers for these three ideas in one
column. In a second column, indicate what happens
to people who do not meet society’s expectations.
Transcendentalism
Or as I like to call them…very early
hippies
History of Transcendentalism
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Took the idea of pervasive morality from
Puritans
Took the concept of nature as a living
mystery from Romantics
Movement grew out of modern thought due to
science and technology
Big Three Transcendentalists
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Ralph Waldo Emerson
Henry David Thoreau
Margaret Fuller
Transcendentalism is NOT a religion
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Does not believe in God
Does not believe in afterlife
Does not believe this life has consequences
on the next
Instead it is a philosophy, state of mind, and
form of spirituality
Transcendentalism rejects afterlife and
places emphasis on THIS life
Basic Assumption of Transcendentalism
Intuition, instead of reason, became
the means for a conscious union of
the individual soul with the world
soul (aka the Oversoul)
Basic Beliefs
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Form of idealism
Human soul part of the Oversoul
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Every individual to be respected; all have portion of
Oversoul
More important to think about this life than worry
about afterlife
Evil is merely an absence of good
Power obtained by demonstrating one’s own
spiritual and moral strength
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Emphasis on self-reliance and human thinking
Great leaders, thinkers, and philosophers show what
individuals can become through thinking and action
Transcendental View of Human Nature
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An individual is the spiritual center of the universe
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The structure of universe literally duplicates the
structure of the individual self-knowledge
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In an individual can be found the clues to nature,
history, and the cosmos itself
All knowledge therefore begins with self-knowledge
Individual virtue and happiness depend upon selfrealization
Nature is a living mystery, full of signs and
symbols
Spiritual View of the World
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The Oversoul is the ultimate spiritual force in creation
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Material objects have no real existence of their own
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All are diffused parts of the Oversoul
By contemplating objects in Nature, the individual can
transcend this world and discover unity between SelfGod-Nature
Unity of life and universe
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The Oversoul encompasses all existence and reconciles all
opposing forces
Relationship between all things
Use of intuition and insight to discover transcendental
reality
Legacy of Transcendentalism
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Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr.
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“Beat” generation of 1950s and “Young
Radicals” of 1960s and 70s
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Protested using civil disobedience
Practiced dissent, anti-materialism, anti-war, and
anti-work ethic sentiments
Popularity of Black Power, Feminism, and
sexual freedoms