[.ca] Self-Reliance and Other Essays (ISBN 0486277909)

Mind Gems:
If you can get past his thick language, Emerson is a gem. He mind is both quick and deep, and therefore is enduring. You start seeing common things in an uncommon way. He is a poet-philosopher par excellence. This selection provides sampling of Emerson's over-all thought. Keep in mind that he is part of the Transcendentalist movement, which was part of the broader religious revival in the mid 1800's. This is the era of Emerson, Thoreau, Dwight L. Moody, Robert Owen and Joseph Smith. You can feel the energy crackling off pages of this book. There is something about this time period that rushed upward. His essays on "Self-Reliance" and "Experience" are must for all adolescents. We need to cut the teeth of our mind on other people. We need to learn form Emerson, and be better for it. The genius of the format is that provide the print without any frills, unctuous commentary, or boring exposition. This book is all meat, which is really what we want.

An American Philosopher:
Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882) is one of America's pre-eminent philosophers. Born into a long line of ministers and preachers, Emerson went to Harvard at the tender age of 14, where he studied to fulfill his destiny and become a minister. Emerson eventually dropped out of this line of work, embarking on a career as a public speaker and serving as the intellectual center of a group called the Transcendentalist Club. This Dover edition contains some of Emerson's best-known essays, specifically "Self-Reliance," as well as his address to the Harvard Divinity School. Emerson's philosophy, although sometimes painfully explicated upon in his own writings, is best summed up by the word "individualism." To Emerson, it is the individual that should be the fulcrum point in all aspects of life. Emerson then took this philosophy and applied it to a myriad of subjects. In "History," the first essay in this collection, Emerson attempts to weave his belief in individual expression into the study of historical events. Emerson argues that a reliance on dates, places, and figures is not nearly as important as reaching within oneself to discover the whole of history. This is important because every man contributes to history, and every man can see himself in any history from any part of the world. Emerson also argues that history, as we presently know it and study it, ignores important fundamentals such as metaphysics and nature. What Emerson seems to attempt with this essay is to create a sort of "unified field theory" of history, a history that encompasses every aspect of the human experience, and one in which everyone takes part. "Self-Reliance," Emerson's masterwork, attempts to explain how man should retain his individualism in the face of society. It is society that stifles the individual, and the trick is to be true to yourself and your conscience. Law should not be, and is not, above the individual. Again, conscience should rule the day. Every man must follow his conscience even if doing so endangers his role in society. This tension between the individual and society Emerson enumerates continues to reverberate to this day. In his address to the Harvard Divinity School, a real charmer that got Emerson banned from the school for years, he addresses individualism in the context of religion. Emerson, himself a trained minister who eventually resigned his pulpit, urges those about to embark on a career in the clergy to reach inside themselves when preaching. Don't rely on the same old tired formulas everyone else relies on, Emerson says, but see what the holy word means to you and then express what you find to your flock in your own way. It's easy to imagine what people who believe that religion is about rote memorization and rituals eons old thought about this speech. They hated it, and hated Emerson for delivering it to the young people in the audience. Several other essays round out the collection, all of them utilizing Emerson's keen sense of the power of the individual. That Emerson is still in print today while some of his contemporaries are not is proof enough of the power and influence of his thought. Whether you agree with his arguments or not (and there is much here to disagree with), there is no denying that he has been enormously influential to American thinkers of his time and those who have come after him.

Okay, Whatever!:
The only reason I even give this silly book 1 star is because of Mr. Emerson's numerous attempts, although ill-spent, to try and humour his readers. Please, such drivel...and from a self-proclaimed genius?! All I can say is that Mr. Emerson obviously wouldn't have understood the intricacies of the computer industry if he were alive today. I have my A+ certification...I bet he never could have certified in anything (even something lame like linux)!

Important Advice:
Although I was a bit leery about deciphering Emerson's 19th century English, I decided to read "Self Reliance" after two people recommended it to me. Now, I am very glad that I read it! Yes, the language was a bit tricky at times, but the wonderful message that Emerson speaks about transcends all barriers of time. The concept of which Emerson writes about is a simple one: the importance of man's trust in himself. Yet, at times, trusting ourselves and creating our own pathways can be very difficult things to do. Emerson points out that we subconsciously rely on others -- on things that others have taught us -- as models for how we should think and act. But to be "great," you have to look past everything you've been taught and ignore the judgments of those that loathe your inner self reliance. Emerson tells us to remember that Pythagoras, Socrates, Jesus, Luther, Copernicus, Galileo, and Newton were all judged harshly for their self reliance, yet they reap the greatest rewards of all men. Emerson also has this to say about what it means to be self reliant: "Let a Stoic open the resources of man, and tell men they are not leaning willows, but can and must detach themselves; that with the exercise of self-trust, new powers shall appear; that a man is the word made flesh, born to shed healing to the nations, that he should be ashamed of our compassion, and that the moment he acts for himself, tossing the laws, the books, idolatries, and customs out the window, we pity him no more, but thank and revere him, -- and that teacher shall restore the life of man to splendor, and make his name dear to all history." Clearly, Emerson's poetic words are true -- there is a great deal of power in becoming self reliant. Personally, I thought that "Self Reliance" was an awesome, inspiring essay. I think that it is one of the only essays that has ever made me want to go out and change my life. Emerson is truly a masterful orator, and I therefore recommend picking up a copy of "Self Reliance." It probably contains some of the best advice you'll ever get.

A Throbing Master Piece:
This book tickled my every emotion, i laughed i cried, i had the best of time and i had the worst of times.Im tall and not a poss. I have no pants on