Relationship between Emerson and Hawthorne, and between Emerson and Whitman

Ralph Waldo Emerson is quite possibly the most influential poet ever, let alone of just his time. He has put forth many ideas on the self and promotes transcendentalism throughout all his works. He is fully due credit for shaping what is now a solid American literary style and idea. Without Emerson, people like Henry David Thoreau, Herman Melville, Robert Frost, Emily Dickinson, Henry James, and Walt Whitman would never have been what they were. With his, "eclectic and unsystematic thinking," Emerson was often criticized as a, "superficial popularizer." (Myerson) Though this criticism came, many of those critics were impressed and had respect for such a deep thinker.

In Contrast, in Walden written by Thoreau, the theme of each chapter develops Thoreau's belief of humanity. Thoreau believes that all men are inherently good. He believes that a man is born good, but outer influences make man choose different paths in their lives. Thoreau also believes that man has free will. This means that man can make their own choices. Also, Thoreau believes that all can experience God directly. Thoreau believes that a person does not have to be a minister or even affiliated with the church to experience Godliness. Also, Thoreau strongly believes that individualism in humanity is very important. He presents this when he moves to Walden Lake and out of civilization for a few years. He only goes into the market to catch up on the gossip and to observe the way people act. He believes that all humanity should be educated by an elder, but then set out to love their life on their own. He represents this when he talks about hunting as a necessity for a higher education, but not a necessity for life.

Some of the greatest American writers of the nineteenth century wrote about a theme of the individual. Two that come to mind when writing about the individual are Henry David Thoreau who wrote Civil Disobedience and Walt Whitman who wrote Ones-Self I Sing. Thoreau was known for being an individualist, who fought against materialism and social conformity. Whitman was similar to Thoreau in that he too took powerful and devoted stands against the social and cultural directions of individuals. Whitman also used his own character as a standard of self, submitting his own essence as equal with that of the everyday person. One last person that comes to mind when writing about the individual is, of course, Ralph Waldo Emerson who wrote Self-Reliance. This literary work is probably the best work about only the individual and how an individual should be perceived.

In addition, The Scarlet Letter written by Hawthorne uses the plot to represent the anti-transcendentalism views of nature. Hawthorne uses the woods as an escape from guilt and a place of sin. The woods were where Dimmesdale and Hester could escape their humiliation and guilt, and prosper in their sinful way. Also, nature was not glorified. The dark woods were where those sinful could ...