Transcendentalism
Walden Pond, Concord MA
What does “transcendentalism” mean?
• There is an ideal spiritual state which “transcends” the physical and empirical.
• A loose collection of eclectic ideas about literature, philosophy, religion, social reform, and the general state of American culture.
• Transcendentalism had different meanings for each person involved in the movement.
Where did it come from?• Ralph Waldo Emerson gave German
philosopher Immanuel Kant credit for popularizing the term “transcendentalism.”
• It began as a reform movement in the Unitarian church.
• It is not a religion—more accurately, it is a philosophy or form of spirituality.
• It centered around Boston and Concord, MA. in the mid-1800’s.
• Emerson first expressed his philosophy of transcendentalism in his essay Nature.
What did Transcendentalists believe?
Transcendentalism: A movement that sought to explore the relationship between humans and nature through emotions rather than through reason.
This was not a religion, but rather a movement to show humans how connected they are to the nature around them.
Who were the Transcendentalists?
• Ralph Waldo Emerson• Henry David Thoreau
Ralph Waldo Emerson
• 1803-1882• Unitarian minister• Poet and essayist• Founded the
Transcendental Club• Popular lecturer• Banned from Harvard for
40 years following his Divinity School address
• Supporter of abolitionism
Henry David Thoreau
• 1817-1862• Schoolteacher, essayist,
poet• Most famous for Walden
and Civil Disobedience• Influenced environmental
movement• Supporter of abolitionism
LITERATURE
• 1800’s literature illustrated daily life in early America.
• Famous Authors of the 1800’s• Washington Irving wrote
• Rip Van Winkle, the Legend of Sleepy Hollow and The Sketchbook • Theme - change occurs but traditions remain
• James Fenimore Cooper wrote• The Deerslayer, The Last of the Mohicans
• Theme – life on the frontier
• Nathaniel Hawthorne wrote• The Scarlet Letter
• Theme – morality, stigma’s, good v evil
• Herman Melville wrote• Moby Dick
• Theme – good v evil
LITERATURE
• Famous Authors of the 1800’s continued• Henry Wadsworth Longfellow wrote
• Paul Revere’s Ride• Theme – American historical events
• Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote• Concord Hymn
• Theme – American historical event, spirituality and transcendentalism
• Henry David Thoreau wrote• Resistance to Civil Government
• Theme – civil disobedience, nature, abolitionism
LITERATURE
• Famous Authors of the 1800’s continued
• Louisa May Alcott wrote• Little Women
• Theme – Feminine humanity
• William Cullen wrote• Thanatopsis • Theme – natural beauty, study of nature, understand life
and death
ART
• Famous Artists of the 1800’s • Hudson River School
• Theme – natural wonders, landscapes of the Catskills Mountains and the Hudson River.
• Established by Thomas Doughty• Artists: Thomas Cole, Asher Durand and George Caleb Bingham
• Artists: George Catlin and Alfred Jacob Miller• Theme – Native American life, fur traders, riverboat workers.
MUSIC
• Famous Musicians of the 1800’s • Stephen C. Foster
• Performed musicals with American songs in large cities and log cabins using banjos and pianos.
• Combined African and European music to create a uniquely American sound.• Songs: My Old Kentucky Home and Swanee River
ARCHITECTURE
• Architectural Themes of the 1800’s • Public buildings were modeled on classical styles of Rome
and Greece.• Private homes and plantations were modeled on the style
of Greek Revival .