Ralph waldo emerson summary
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Ralph Waldo Emerson
American philosopher (1803–1882)
"Ralph Emerson" redirects here. For other uses, see Ralph Emerson (disambiguation).
Ralph Waldo Emerson | |
|---|---|
Emerson c. 1857 | |
| Born | (1803-05-25)May 25, 1803 Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Died | April 27, 1882(1882-04-27) (aged 78) Concord, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Alma mater | Harvard University |
| Spouse(s) | Ellen Louisa Tucker (m. 1829; died 1831) |
| Era | 19th-century philosophy |
| Region | American philosophy |
| School | Transcendentalism |
| Institutions | Harvard College |
Main interests | Individualism, nature, divinity, cultural criticism |
Notable ideas | Self-reliance, transparent eyeball, double consciousness, stream of thought |
| Religion | Christianity |
| Church | Unitarianism |
| Ordained | 11 January 1829 |
| Laicized | 1832 |
Ralph Waldo Emerson (May 25, 1803 – April 27, 1882),[2] who went by his middle name Waldo,[3] was an American essayist, lecturer, philosopher, minis
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Ralph Waldo Emerson
American poet, essayist, and philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson was born on May 25, 1803, in Boston. After studying at Harvard and teaching for a brief time, Emerson entered the ministry. He was appointed to the Old Second Church in his native city, but soon became an unwilling preacher. Unable in conscience to administer the sacrament of the Lord’s Soon after the death of his nineteen-year-old wife of tuberculosis, Emerson resigned his pastorate in 1831.
The following year, Emerson sailed for Europe, visiting Thomas Carlyle and Samuel Taylor Coleridge. Carlyle, the Scottish-born English writer, was famous for his explosive attacks on hypocrisy and materialism, his distrust of democracy, and his highly romantic belief in the power of the individual. Emerson’s friendship with Carlyle was both lasting and significant; the insights of the British thinker helped Emerson formulate his own philosophy.
On his return to New England, Emerson became known for challenging traditional thought. In 1835, he married his second wife, Lydia Jackson, and settled in Concord, M
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Ralph Waldo Emerson
1. Chronology of Emerson’s Life
- 1803
- Born in Boston to William and Ruth Haskins Emerson.
- 1811
- Father dies, probably of tuberculosis.
- 1812
- Enters Boston Public Latin School
- 1817
- Begins study at Harvard College: Greek, Latin, History, Rhetoric.
- 1820
- Starts first journal, entitled “The Wide World.”
- 1821
- Graduates from Harvard and begins teaching at his brother William’s school for young ladies in Boston.
- 1825
- Enters Harvard Divinity School.
- 1829
- Marries Ellen Tucker and is ordained minister at Boston’s Second Church.
- 1831
- Ellen Tucker Emerson dies, at age 19.
- 1832
- Resigns position as minister and sails for Europe.
- 1833
- Meets Wordsworth, Coleridge, J. S. Mill, and Thomas Carlyle. Returns to Boston in November, where he begins a career as a lecturer.
- 1834
- Receives first half of a substantial inheritance from Ellen’s estate (second half comes in 1837).
- 1835
- Marries Lidian Jackson.
- 1836
- Publishes first book, Nature.
- 1838
- Delivers the “Divinity School Address.” Protests relocation of the
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