Sample Student Research Project, spring 2006
LITR
4232: American Renaissance
Sample Student Research Project, spring 2006
William Wolfe
April 08, 2006
Eastern
Influence in American Transcendentalism
The formation of the Transcendentalist movement in the United States coincides with the birth of American classical literature. The movement has its roots, primarily, in the philosophical theories put forth by German philosopher, Immanuel Kant. However, the artists of Concord, Massachusetts utilized the basic tenants of Kantian thought as a springboard by which they launched the concept of American Transcendentalism. Kant’s teachings may have served as a foundation for the movement, but writers such as Ralph Waldo Emerson, Bronson Alcott, and Henry David Thoreau shaped it. These artists shared a common belief: that the human soul was intimately connected to the natural world and, by recognizing and accepting that connection, mankind could transcend (or rise above) normal human existence. For nineteenth century New England, this idea seemed radical and forward thinking. The Concordian intellectuals, however, knew that the idea was neither radical nor original. Many of the concepts of American Transcendentalism are based on long held eastern religious and cultural beliefs. Emerson and his contemporaries were students of eastern philosophy and incorporated eastern ideology into their writings. To better understand how Eastern thought influenced the American Transcendentalists it is beneficial to examine some of the works of Emerson, who became the movement’s greatest writer.
Many who have studied the American Transcendentalist movement have embraced the notion that it was merely an extension of the philosophy of Immanuel Kant. However, in looking at the writings of Emerson (and others) it is easy to see how that assumption comes up short. Kant believed that the ultimate good or the Summum Bonum was quite simply, good will. He posited that emotion and/or feeling was not a prerequisite for moral righteousness because good will itself is enough to incite action. Kant believed in the categorical imperative of universal law. However, Kant does not make a specific connection between the human condition and the natural world, which is a primary tenant of American Transcendentalism. Emerson conversely makes that connection obvious time and again in his writings.
Ralph Waldo Emerson, who is arguably the primary figure in American Transcendentalist thought, began his career as a minister. Although he eventually broke with the church, the intense spirituality that had become such a fundamental component of his belief system remained. However, his Christian spirituality was tempered and transformed, in large part, by his familiarity with eastern religions such and Hinduism. According to Emersonian scholar, Arthur Christy, “No one Oriental volume that ever came to Concord was more influential than the Bhagavadgita.” Christy goes on to explain that, “...for years Emerson was one of the very few Americans who owned a copy.” (Christy, 23). The Bhagavadgita is a Hindu book of spiritual dialogue in which the Hindu God, Krishna, imparts his wisdom to a mortal. Krishna emphasizes the strength of the human soul and its connection to the universe. The book also imparts knowledge and understanding of the individuals part in a greater whole. These tenants are the basis for many of Emerson's writings. He fuses the Hindu beliefs with traditional Christian doctrine to arrive at a theory of life and Divinity that was unique and refreshing.
None of Emerson’s works so boldly illustrate what he termed, “the Infinitude of the Asiatic Soul,” more completely than his poem, “Brahma” (Goddard, 126).
If the red slayer think he slay
Or the slain think that he is slain,
They know not well the subtle ways
I keep, and pass, and turn again.
Far or forgot to me is near;
Shadow and sunlight are the same;
The vanished gods to me appear;
And one to me are shame and fame. (Lines 1-8)
This poem epitomizes the impact that Hindu thought had on Emerson. In the first four lines, Emerson intimates that the cycle of life is never complete. He draws attention to the idea that, even in death, mankind remains a part of the universal whole. In the following lines (5-8) he speaks of the sameness of opposites: shadow and sunlight; far and near, and shame and fame. The idea of comprehensive opposites is a primary tenant of the Hindu belief in transmigration. Perhaps the most troubling aspect of the poem is the concluding line in which Emerson writes, “Find me, and turn thy back on heaven.” Some scholars hold that this line suggests that Emerson is indicting Hindu beliefs and not embracing them (Versluis, 64). However, it can be argued that this line is simply a means of striking a balance between traditional Christian rationale and Hindu ideology. To completely discount Emerson’s identification with the subject of “Brahma” would lead to an ineffectual reading of his essay, “The Over-Soul.”
“The Over-Soul” stands as one of Emerson’s most enduring statements on the human condition. The essay was part of a collection that was published in 1841. Emerson was fascinated with Hindu religious writings and often, “turned to them as a, religious psychologist, not as a metaphysician. This use of many of the cardinal doctrines...as an expression of his own beliefs is the most interesting feature of Emerson’s Orientalism” (Christy, 73). One cannot deny the influence of the Hindu concept of Brahma in Emerson’s, “The Over-Soul.” Brahma, in eastern religion, signifies, in the simplest of terms, the universal connection of the soul with the divine. This is also the driving mechanism for Emerson’s the Over-Soul. Edward Emerson (Ralph Waldo’s son) claimed that his father, like the Hindus, was searching for a ‘Universal Fact’ or truth which he found in his concept of “the Over-Soul; the Hindus called it Brahma” (Christy, 86).
“ That Unity, that Over-Soul, within which every man’s particular being is contained and made one with all other; that common heart of which all sincere conversation is the worship, to which all right action is submission; that overpowering reality which confutes our tricks and talents, and constrains every one to pass for what he is...” (Emerson, 262)
In the above passage, Emerson suggests that the Over-Soul is not only all encompassing but all powerful as well. It is the “overpowering reality” by which mankind is linked to all creation and by which he is confined to becoming only that which he is intended to become. This may appear somewhat contradictory because it claims that man is both connected to the greater whole and confined by limitations at the same time. It is, according to Emerson, the Over-Soul, that strikes the balance.
To further illustrate the concept of the Over-Soul, Emerson applies it to something he is imminently qualified to examine, human intellect:
“Those who are capable of humility, of justice, of aspiration, stand already on a platform that commands the sciences and arts, speech and poetry, action and grace.” (Emerson, 266)
Emerson unapologetically makes the claim that some are bound for greatness of intellect while others must suffer the banality of limited intelligence. His belief is that each must find comfort in his own abilities and, by doing so, will recognize his own potential.
If there is one area in which the similarities between the concepts of Brahma and the Over-Soul become blurred is that the Brahma makes no room for the God of Christian theology. Emerson, by the time that this essay was written, had already left the church but he was still, most definitely, a Christian. So how can Christian ideology support the belief in an Over-Soul? Emerson addresses this idea directly in the essay:
“He [man] must greatly listen to himself, withdrawing himself from all the accents of other men’s devotion. Our religion vulgarly stands on numbers of believers. Whatever the appeal is made-no matter how indirectly-to numbers, proclamation is then and there made that religion is not. He that finds God a sweet enveloping thought to him never counts his company.” (Emerson, 276)
As with all aspects of the Over-Soul, Emerson claims that religion is a singular consideration and must be made on an individual basis. This is the manner of thought that led him to leave the church in the first place. Each person must form his own relationship with the Divine, and that relationship may take many different forms including Christianity and Hinduism.
Throughout his literary career, Emerson’s work was increasingly influenced by Asiatic religion. In 1861, he published Conduct of Life. One of the essays contained within that collection was, “Fate.” It is in this essay that Emerson’s readers can see how completely he has assimilated many tenets of Eastern thought. The concepts of fate and karma are integral to many Asiatic religions including Hinduism. Emerson illustrates how important these doctrines are to his own belief system. In the essay, he addresses the idea of karma:
“ -in the history of the individual is always an account of his condition, and he knows himself to be a party to his present state...The element running through entire nature, which we popularly call Fate, is known to us as limitation. Whatever limits us we call Fate.”
Emerson acknowledges Fate as an impediment, one that cannot be easily subverted or maneuvered around. It is, instead, a presence that serves to block or thwart human progression. Fate is not a presiding tenet of most Christian theologies which makes Emerson’s assertions in this essay problematic for some. Unlike his essay on the Over-Soul, he makes no allowances for his departure from traditional Christian teachings.
In this essay Emerson explains the purpose and rationale behind fate, “Fate appears as vindicator, leveling the high, lifting the low, requiring justice in man, and always striking soon or late when justice is not done.” This line, according to Arthur Versluis, illustrates that “Fate includes the universal justice of karma and entails transmigration” (Versluis, 62). For those who believe that universal justice is dispensed only by God, this is a problematic assertion. Emerson once again offers no apologies for his considerations.
To say that the Emerson was only influenced by the writings and religious practices of East would be simple-minded and inaccurate. That was the beauty of the Transcendentalist movement in America. As easy as it is to identify the Christian messages in Emerson’s work it is impossible to ignore additional influences. His writings also contain elements of Platonic teachings, Ancient Greek and Roman Mythology, and yes, Asiatic religion. The Transcendental movement, spearheaded by Emerson, concerned itself with the elevation of mankind through introspection and external stimulation. They embraced the natural world as a symbol of man’s inherent potential and did not limit themselves by their religious backgrounds. The Transcendentalist movement was never specifically defined and did not have a manifesto or a mission statement because it focused on individuality and free thought. Some may claim that its focus on alternative religious teachings was blasphemous while others may say that it was indicative of the emerging American spirit. Transcendentalism, as a movement did not last into the twentieth century but, even so, one is forced acknowledge the fact that it forever changed the face of American literature.
Works Cited
Christy, Arthur. The Orient in American Transcendentalism. New York: Octagon Books, Inc. 1963.
Emerson, Ralph Waldo. The Selected Writings of Ralph Waldo Emerson. Ed. Brooks Atkinson. New York: Random House, Inc. 1940.
Goddard, Harold Clarke. Studies in New England Transcendentalism. New York: Hillary House Publ. Ltd. 1960.
Versluis, Arthur. American Transcendentalism and Asian Religions. New York: Oxford UP. 1993.
Versluis, Arthur. The Esoteric Origins of the American Renaissance. New York: Oxford UP. 2001.
