Ralph Waldo Emerson

One of my favorite writers because of his work and his view on life is Ralph Waldo Emerson. He was born May 25, 1803, Boston and died April 27, 1882, Concord Massachusetts. His education was from Boston Latin School and Harvard Divinity University. Being a prodigy, he attended Harvard at age 14, making him the youngest in his classes. After graduating, he became a Unitarian minister, but left the church because of philosophical differences. Emerson is a famous poet, essayist, and lecturer. A few books he's known for are Compensation, English traits, Spiritual Laws, and Father, we thank you. Emerson was the leader of the Transcendentalism movement in America. His colleagues and he believed religion was too limited and conventional. His view was that spirituality was through communion with nature. Transcendental writing is where the writer connects their writing to nature and both themselves and the readers instead of using the mechanics for writing. Because Transcendentalism was controversial at the time, Emerson published a book called "Nature" on the subject anonymously. A few of his friends who were also writers were Samuel Coleridge, William Wordsworth, and Henry Thoreau. His friends called him "The Sage of Concord" because they thought he was so wise. Emerson opposed slavery and favored women's rights, which was controversial at the time so he would be shouted at at public appearances. He didn't like Abraham Lincoln's view of preserving the union instead of freeing slaves, but after he went to speak to the president, his view softened and he even spoke at Lincoln's memorial service. As Emerson aged though, he began to lose his memory. He would be late to appointments, forget details of his life, and even forgot his name. At a funeral for his friend Henry Longfellow, he didn't remember his friend's name.