of the 19th century. The philosophical theory contained such

aspects as self-examination, the celebration of individualism, and

the belief that the fundamental truths existed outside of human

experience. Fulfillment of this search for knowledge came when

one gained an acute awareness of beauty and truth, and

communicated with nature to find union with the Over-Soul. When

this occurred, one was cleansed of materialistic aims, and was left

with a sense of self-reliance and purity. Two authors who were

among the leaders of the movement were Ralph Waldo Emerson

and Henry David Thoreau, whose works "Nature",

"Self-Reliance", and "Walden" brought America to the forefront of

the transcendentalist movement. Their ideas opposed the popular

materialist views of life and voiced a desire for freedom of the

individual from artificial restraints. They felt that if they explored

nature thoroughly, they would come to know themselves and the

The concept of transcendentalism is clearly expressed in the

essay "Nature", by Ralph Waldo Emerson. Emerson was a leade

philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson. His most honored and enjoyed

In "Walden", Thoreau explains why he chose the woods:

the conviction that envy is ignorance; that imitation is suicide; that

front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not

they could fulfill their potential in life. One achieved this through

"I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to

transcendentalism- that one must celebrate the individual in order

outdoors and freeing oneself of previous evils. In the following

fundamental movement that was forever immortalized by

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Approximate Word count = 778
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)