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Transcendentalism

 

            
             Transcendentalism views include the notion that all humanity is good, the glories of nature, and the importance of individual expression without interference. The notion that all humanity is good means that the Transcendentalists believed that all people are good but there is always something that leads them to do bad things. An example of this view of Transcendentalism is when Emerson says in his short story Self-Reliance that "he who would gather immortal palms must not be hindered by the name of goodness, but must explore if it be goodness." I am attacking this view that Transcendentalists have because not all people can be or ever were good. Your own decisions lead to if you are good or bad. The people around you have only a minor influence on you compared to the influence that you have on yourself. Not all humanity is good. Just look at Joseph Stalin or Adolf Hitler. These two men killed millions and millions of people with no real reason to do it. It is impossible to believe that everyone can be good or are good or ever will be good. Everyone has a different mind and different beliefs. Something that might seem bad to someone might seem good to someone else. I have met people who seem to be good but do bad things and things that might offend someone else.
             By the glories of nature, the Transcendentalists meant that nature had a lot to offer and that it should not be taken lightly. For example, in Emerson's poem The Snowstorm, he talks about the arriving snow and the hills and the woods and how glorious they are. I agree with him in this aspect of the beliefs of the Transcendentalists because I too think that nature is glorious and that it is better left untouched and uninterrupted by people. My ultimate belief is that nature is glorious and if it is left alone, it may prosper without interference. My own experiences with nature have been superb. I have gone camping and hiking many times and I must say that I find nature much more pleasant than the hustle and bustle of the city with all its pollution.


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