Which side of the divide do you fall? Are you closer to being a Transcendentalist or a Dark Romantic?

This is such a hard question to answer because of the many things that go on in the world. It would be so nice to believe that everyone has pure good in themselves, but when you look at the news you know that this is just not true. This is why I feel that I am closer to being a Dark Romantic than a Transcendentalist. I believe that we all have a little evil inside ourselves and I think it is just something natural. I do not believe it was because of Adam and Eve, but I do believe sometimes we are selfish and a little evil. Some people are not just evil, but they are insane. I really would love to believe that everyone is good, but that is just something that is not true and that is why I feel I am closer to being a Dark Romantic.

Resistance to Civil Government/Guy in Video

I found the essay, Resistance to Civil Government, to be really eye-opening. It gave me an idea of how the Transcendentalist felt toward government. I love the line about how the best government is the one that does not govern at all. I agree with this statement because a government is necessary, but it only works well when the people are involved and we all make a vote. “The only obligation which I have a right to assume, is to do at any time what I think right…” A couple of lines before that quote, it said that shouldn’t there be a government where it doesn’t decide for you what is right from wrong but one that it enables you to use your conscience. Later on it continues on to say that why do people have a conscience at all if we can’t decide for ourselves. I think this one of the most powerful statements from the essay and that we need to appreciate that we do have a right to voice our opinion now and it was something that was worked on for many years.

Since Transcendentalists believed that the individual human mind was a very powerful instrument, I believe that this quote demonstrates it. “I know this well, that if one thou­sand, if one hun­dred, if ten men whom I could name, — if ten hon­est men only, — aye, if one hon­est man, in this State of Mas­sa­chu­setts, ceas­ing to hold slaves, were ac­tu­ally to with­draw from this co­part­ner­ship, and be locked up in the county jail there­for, it would be the ab­o­li­tion of slav­ery in Amer­ica. For it mat­ters not how small the be­gin­ning may seem to be: what is once well done is done for ever.” This quote basically says if at least one honest person was willing to stand up for themselves and retreat from approving slavery, that it would end it forever. Transcendentalists believed that everyone was connected in a way. If one person was to retreat from that co-partnership, that everyone would, too.

Man in Video
I thought that the man in the video applied transcendentalism to his life in many ways. He was alone in the wilderness and shows a lot of individualism. He built his own cabin with all the amenities he needed and that show he was very hard working. Being in the wilderness in general alone connecting with nature also demonstrates transcendentalist’s beliefs.

Self-Reliance

The piece of writing from Self-Reliance talks a lot about how you should trust yourself. I found it very interesting because of how it says not to just go with everyone else thinks but to really express entirely your own emotions. This quote stuck out to me a lot. “Nothing is at last sacred but the integrity of your own mind. Absolve you to yourself, and you shall have the suffrage of the world…” I like how it says that the only thing that anyone has sacred is their own honesty and principles and I completely agree. I believe that if you don’t have your moral principles and stand up for them, then you really don’t have anything. To different people it might mean different things. To me, the quote says that you should only have to respond to yourself and that when you achieve this, you will have the respect of the world.

This is a good example of Transcendentalism for one main reason: it promotes individualism. This quote in particular talks about how people only half express themselves. “We but half express ourselves, and are ashamed of that divine idea which each of us represents.” To me it means that people are ashamed to be individuals and express their true feelings and that we only express ourselves half way and never completely. Transcendentalists believed that each individual mind was a powerful instrument. I think that when Emerson made the point of people only half expressing themselves proved that point.

from Nature

I thought that the piece of writing from Nature was really interesting to read. He explains so many things about how we take simple things for granted when we become adults. One particular part that I liked was when he said that the property owner’s of a farm did not really own it. He said that the only ones who owned it were the poets who knew how to “unify” all parts of the landscape. I found it interesting because so many of us view a farm as just that: a farm. But, there are others who understand nature in a way that a lot of us can’t and that is a true virtue. I liked when he says that adults can’t really see the sun. To us, it is just something that we see through our eyes, but that to children, it “shines into the eye and the heart of a child.” This stuck out to me because I believe it is very true. Children are so innocent and they view things completely different than we do.


I think this piece of writing really reflects transcendentalism in many ways. It talks a lot about how nature affects everyone’s state of mind. It shows that Emerson believed that he thought God communicated to men through nature. This particular quote is very interesting. “The lover of nature is he whose inward and outward senses are still truly adjusted to each other; who has retained the spirit of infancy even into the era of manhood. His intercourse with heaven and Earth, becomes part of his daily food.” I feel that it means that the only ones who can truly love nature are the ones who not only see it but feel it as well. I think it is very different to just see beautiful scenery than to really feel it and for it to give you some type of emotion. Emerson is trying to say that God speaks to you when you feel the different emotions nature gives to you.

Romanticism Painting

I chose this painting for Romanticism because it leaves a lot of things to the imagination. On the far left, we see the beginning of a bridge, but we do not see the end. We get a really good idea of what it should look like when we use our imagination though.

The Ropewalk

I think the main point in the poem The Ropewalk is daydreaming and imagination. He thinks about all the different ways the ropes being made are used and all of it is tranquil thoughts. He describes the building in the beginning and the end and the description gives us the idea that he is not happy there. However in the middle, he describes how these rows bring calmness and happiness to others. It is definitely Romantic because of the focus on nature when he describes a lot of the things the rope is used for. Imagination is also a major part because throughout the poem he is daydreaming. The one image that stands out to me though is the school boy. It is such a happy thought watching a child play with a kite. I believe he daydreams just to be able to get through the day.

Thanatopsis

The poem Thanatopsis by William Cullen Bryan is perfect example of Romanticism. It focuses on promoting the common people, nature, and imagination. We can see many examples of the focus on imagination and nature. “Go forth under the open sky, and list To Nature's teachings, while from all around-- Earth and her waters, and the depths of air,-- Comes a still voice.” This quote is basically saying listen close to Mother Nature and of course Mother Nature is really not talking, but it implies for us to imagine it and listen to her voice. Nature is another example in this same quote when it talks about the Earth’s water and the air. ”Thou shalt lie down, With patriarchs of the infant world--with kings The powerful of the earth--the wise, the good, Fair forms, and hoary seers of ages past, All in one mighty sepulchre” I love this part of the poem Thanatopsis because it says no matter who you are or what you did, you will eventually die and everyone will lie down together. It promotes the common people and tells us not to be afraid of death. The entire poem tries to give some comfort to whoever is afraid of death. It basically says that we are all going to die, but that we should not be afraid of it because you are not going to be alone. You will be more accompanied when you die than when you are alive. I am not afraid of dying, but I am more afraid of what comes after that. However, I did find some comfort in reading this poem and I think everyone at one point or another in their lives should read it.

Romanticism Task 1

I found that in the story Rip Van Winkle there was a lot of nature involved. There were a lot of joyful scenes such as the children running after him whenever they saw him. I liked one particular quote that I thought was interesting. “When the rest of the landscape is cloudless, they will gather a hood of gray vapors about their summits, which, in the last rays of the setting sun, will glow and light up like a crown of glory.” It said there was a lot of grayness in the sky, but the last rays of the sun made it glow and light up into beautiful scenery. To me, I believe this quote meant that in the mist of the grayness, there is light that symbolized hope in my opinion. “He rubbed his eyes—it was a bright sunny morning. The birds were hopping and twittering among the bushes, and the eagle was wheeling aloft, and breasting the pure mountain breeze.” This quote also depicts beautiful scenery. Books were the only way for people to escape the city. It was a time when imagination was key to being able to get away from the noise and riot of the city. Romantics focused a lot on nature in their writings and I think Washington Irving was able to accomplish this in his book.