Unit 3 - 副本.ppt

Unit 3 High Romanticism: Transcendentalism Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau High Romanticism: Transcendentalism It was in the hands of the Transcendentalists that American literature really matured and American Romanticism reached its summit. It is religious, philosophical, and literary. In 1836, a little book came out which made a tremendous impact on the intellectual life of America. It was entitled Nature by Ralph Waldo Emerson. Nature’s voice pushed American Romanticism into a new phase, the phase of New England Transcendentalism, the summit of American Romanticism. “The Universe is composed of Nature and the Soul. Spirit is present everywhere.” Transcendental Club The club was an informal group, whose members often met at Emerson’s Concord home to discuss such topics as philosophy, morality, literature, and politics, concerning themselves with reform movements and social revolt. The Dial (1840-1844), their journal The club was made up of some thirty members, including Emerson, Thoreau, Bronson Alcott, and Margaret Fuller. Major features “What is popularly called Transcendentalism among us is idealism.” (Emerson) First, the Transcendentalists placed emphasis on spirit, or the Oversoul，as the most important thing in the universe. The Oversoul was an all-pervading power for goodness, omnipresent and omnipotent, from which all things came and of which all were a part. It existed in nature and man alike and constituted the chief element of the universe. Major features Secondly, the Transcendentalists stressed the importance of the individual. They were telling people to depend upon themselves for spiritual perfection. The regeneration of the individual, his perfection, his self-culture, and self-improvement; the ideal type of man was a self-reliant individual Major features Thirdly, the Transcendentalists offered a fresh perception of nature as symbolic of the Spirit or God. Nature was, to them, not purely matter. It was alive, filled with God’s