A Self-Reliant Reader

A detailed Summary of A Self-Reliant Reader

Ralph Waldo Emerson urged the population to be "self-reliant" readers. From his different works it is apparent to me that Emerson's definition of a self-reliant reader necessitates one to not just simply read and repeat his thought and ideas, but rather to ponder his positions and arguments, and then to apply them to their own life and experiences. Because Emerson truly wanted people to read in this manner, he created an equal relationship between the author and the reader. Emerson did not take an authoritative position in his pieces; his prose is scattered and oftentimes seems to parallel a tripped out conversation between scholars. His radical views on writing, speaking, and human interaction have made him a most important and influential literary figure.

Emerson stated in his essay Self-Reliance that, "Our reading is mendicant and sycophantic" (Emerson 38). By this, he meant that the average reader did not evaluate and draw their own conclusions on what they had read. He feels that most people read the words on the page and accepts what is presented to them. I feel that Emerson purposely writes in such a way so that the reader must think about the meanings of every word. I feel that this is a very effective technique

The idea that reading was one of the main factors for his extreme desire to be free was described when he was sent away from his master in Baltimore and back into the country. There he was worked and beat, just as he was in his adolescence. During this period of Douglass' life, he did not have the opportunity to read or write, as he was accustomed. In response to his disconnection from literature, his burning desire for freedom was extinguished along with his hope. As soon as Douglass returned to Baltimore, his yearning for the release of his shackles returned to him as strong as ever. He used reading not only as a teaching device, but also as inspiration for his independence. His desire to be out of white control grew as he read and learned of the injustices that were committed by the white American population. I believe that Emerson would consider Douglass an extremely self-reliant reader in that he doesn't simply read and regurgitate thoughts. Douglass read, interpreted, and applied what he had learned to his own real life situation.

to keep the reader alert and thinking. One literary device that Emerson uses is the method of tautology. Tautology is a sentence that disproves or convolutes itself. "Always scorn appearances, and you always may" (Emerson 36). This quote contradicts itself, in that the "may" at the end of the sentence disproves the point he was attempting to make. If it ended in a word such as "will" or something else along those same lines, the sentence could have been true. This again is a method Emerson used to keep a reader attached and questioning.

This concept of a self-reliant reader can be applied to other great writers, such as Frederick Douglass. Because Douglass grew up as a black slave in America, he had obvious disadvantages, especially that of being kept ignorant to the world around him. One day Douglass overheard his master telling his mistress that if one is to teach a slave to read and write they become unfit to be a slave and seek refuge from this horrific institution. "If you give a nigger and inch, he will take an ell...Learning would spoil the best nigger in the world" (Douglass 325). After Douglass heard that conversation, he was not discouraged, but rather, he was a changed man. "These words sank deeply into my heart...From that moment, I understood the pathway from slaver

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Approximate Word count = 1584
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: English