Emerson was born in 1803 in Massachusetts. He graduated and became a minister. "Emerson left his pastorate because of doctrinal disputes with his superiors".(www2.lucidcafe.com) He decided to take a year and a half off and travel to Europe. While in Europe, he learned many new things about his inner self, both strengths and weaknesses. Upon his return, Emerson stopped preaching for Christianity and began preaching for the people. Many people began to view him as either a radical or a conservative radical. This did not bother Emerson, as he was doing this for himself, to be a true perfectionist.

Emerson tries to believe in himself. For the only way to become a true perfectionist is to believe in your body, mind and soul, not someone else's. Society is plagued by the same theme, meani

"There is a time in every man's education when he arrives at

that he must take himself for better, for worse, as his portion;

ground which is given to him to till". (176)

I find Emerson to be one of the most fascinating, influential and intellectual people that I know. Yet, this contradicts what he is trying to say. Look to yourself for the answers, not someone else. How can someone be influential and try to have people believe in themselves. Ralph Waldo Emerson perfects his soul through the knowledge and understanding of his own self-reliance.

I do believe that Emerson accomplishes complete and total perfection. Yet, the perfection that he accomplished is unlike any perfection that I know. He was looking for himself to be perfect, while everyone else still had their few to many faults. He states that he is closer to attaining, as well as understanding, his goal (while still focusing on himself),

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

Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1281
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)