Ralph Waldo Emerson was a leading philosopher of the American Transcendentalism movement. He was also an essayist, poet, and lecturer who was known for his eloquent and powerful speeches.
Emerson was born on May 25, 1803 in Boston, Massachusetts. His father was William Emerson, an Unitarian minister and educator who taught at Harvard Divinity School. His mother was Ruth Haskins Emerson, the daughter of a wealthy landowner.
Philosopher’s early education took place at home with private tutors until he entered Harvard College in 1817 to study law. However, he soon became dissatisfied with this career path and decided to focus on philosophy instead. He left college in 1821 without graduating and moved to Concord, Massachusetts where he became friends with Henry David Thoreau and Bronson Alcott.
In fact, Emerson is best known for his 1841 essay “Self-Reliance.” In this piece, he wrote that it is important for people to rely on their own minds rather than society or religion. He also encouraged people to follow their own path instead of conforming to what others expected of them.
Emerson’s early works included Nature (1836) which discussed ideas about nature as being divinely inspired and connected to God; Self-Reliance (1841) which encouraged people not to rely on others but instead strive for self-improvement through their own efforts; and Representative Men (1850), which discussed how various historical figures were representative of certain ideals or philosophies that were influential during their time period.
