Elizabeth L. Sydnor
American Romanticism
Dr. Craig White
July 3, 2002

My Journey Through the Life and Mind of Emerson

I: Introduction

            When I first delved into the research and biographies of Emerson’s, I wanted to learn how Emerson’s concepts concerning nature effected the human spirit.  I also wanted to find a connection between Emerson and the poets: T. S. Eliot and Walt Whitman.  I found that I was naïve because from the beginning, I thought I was looking for a Pantheistic philosophy.  However, now, I realize that I was really looking for the correspondence theory of Nature.  A pantheistic philosophy does not fully define Emerson’s philosophies.  “Pantheism is an ancient religion that holds everything in the universe sacred.  All of nature’s creations are divine, interconnected and each is a god.” (Pantheism) In Emerson’s case, “nature’s creations” as “divine” is not completely true.  In other words, Emerson treads the waters of Pantheism, and he simply steps back into a more transcendental philosophy. 

            Later, I wanted to pursue Transcendentalism, which is a lot like Pantheism.  But the only difference is that transcendental philosophy means that a person can transcend beyond the here and now or in Emerson’s case, nature.  Then I realized that by reading Emerson’s biography that he was truly effected by nature.  Louise H. Westling discusses a “visit to the Jardin des Plantes in Paris five years later, on a voyage taken to relieve his grief after the death of his first wife, also seems to have turned him toward Nature as an alternative to the burden of history and the European cultural heritage.” (40-1) Ralph Waldo Emerson was born in 1803 to “William Emerson, the Unitarian minister at Boston’s First Church”and to Ruth Haskins Emerson”. (Richardson) She exclusively took care of Ralph when his father died—Ralph was only eight.   Emerson attended Harvard, and later became a teacher for a short time.  After his short stint in teaching, Emerson began his career as a Unitarian minister.  However, he became discouraged with the limitations of the Unitarian doctrine.  After studying Goethe and Swedenborg—among many other philosophers, Emerson moved on to a belief that would better suit his passion for nature.  Then, Transcendentalism began its rise in America because of Emerson sparks the transcendental movement with his essays that in his view transcended the Swedenborgian philosophies.

II: Secondary Sources

            I looked at four books that touch on the subject of Pantheism, Transcendentalism, and the correspondence theory of nature.  This is how I narrowed my focus from Pantheism to Transcendentalism down to the correspondence theory of nature.  From the beginning, I found this topic difficult to find research on. However, through reading many articles and books, I found a few that touched on these topics and allowed me to narrow my focus from Pantheism and eventually to the correspondence theory of nature.   

            From the beginning, I was interested in Pantheism because I could see that Emerson’s views were very close to this philosophy.  Pantheism and Transcendentalism share many principles; however, in Transcendentalism, nature is not perceived as divine.  Because of this close relationship between the two philosophies, Pantheism kept creeping up in my research.  Lawrence Buell provides an excellent definition on the closeness of the philosophies by stating that:

Natural religion, which Transcendentalism essentially was, has strong pantheistic tendencies, which inevitably come to the fore when the devotee turns to nature in a reverential mood.  Pantheism in turn, is a highly poetic religion.  Its central principle, that God is everywhere, is allied to the symbolic perception in poetry; and both share a strong mystical bent. (151)

Both Emerson’s essays and poetry share a “mystical bent” and a “reverential mood”. Louise Westling discusses that Emerson’s essay, Nature, demonstrates a “supreme Father who legitimizes his oracular voice: the God behind Nature.  However, where Emerson falls short of being a pantheist is when he discusses that man “and the physical universe, […] are parallel creations of the same divine spirit; therefore natural  and moral law are the same and everything in nature, rightly seen, has spiritual significance for man.” (Buell 149) When Buell paraphrases Emerson by stating that man and the universe are parallel, this would mean equal.  He also states that nature has spiritual significance to man—and not that Nature is seen as divine. 

            In my research, I found that the discussions dealt more with how Nature effected man and how man effected nature.  Because Pantheism and Transcendentalism are such broad subjects, I discovered that the correspondence theory of nature truly applies to Emerson relationship to nature on a narrower scope.  Buell describes the “basis of Transcendentalist thinking as to the role of nature in art is the idea of a metaphysical correspondence between nature and spirit, as expressed chiefly by Emerson. (149)  I believe that Emerson himself explains the relationship between nature and man best by stating in his famous essay “Nature” that:

He placed in the centre of beings, and a ray of relation passes from every other being to him.  And neither can man be understood without these objects, nor these objects without man.  All these facts in natural history taken by themselves, have no value, but are barren, like a single sex. (50)

Emerson places the person in the “centre” and he explains that a “ray of relation passes” from all the beings.  But, more importantly, Emerson states that neither man nor object can be understood without the other.  This truly explains how correspondence works within Emerson’s “Nature” essay.  Emerson describes that man and nature have a relationship with each other that mutually effects each other; however, neither one is deified as a pantheist would have. 

            Another interest that Emerson has is topology and language.  Emerson believes that language is essential for communicating the realm of nature and its effect on man and vise versa.  Emerson displays his “famous theory of language [he] sets forth in “Nature”, the manifesto of the Transcendental movement: […He] argued, “Words are signs of natural facts….Particular natural facts are symbols of particular spiritual facts….Nature is the symbol of spirit.” (West 259).  West continues to say that “Nature seems to assume that the links between words, things, and spirit are one-to-one, absorbed into the mind not created.” Nature as a symbol of the spirit would coincide with the correspondence theory of nature because of the idea that West states about the “links” between “words, things, and spirit”.  The word “link” is essential in West’s argument because the word “link” proves the connection and the effect that nature has on man and man has on nature.  It would also evoke that because the two are linked that there has to be an effect—therefore a correspondence.

            However, through this correspondence, I found the true beauty that Emerson felt by reading the critical works and by reading Emerson’s essays.  “The integrity of Emerson […] is in not denying either the immediate sensuous beauty or the transcendental impulse.”  (Elder 154) Emerson sees the beauty of nature, and he sees that nature effects man.  Emerson suggests that there is “an occult relation between man and the vegetable.” (39) This would imply that this relationship is beyond human understanding; however, Emerson played with the usage of tropes, and “Nature itself is a vast trope, and all particular natures are tropes.  Therefore, Emerson is “[t]ying art to metaphysics […]” (Buell 155).  Because Emerson ties art to metaphysics, this reminds me of the “metaphysical correspondence between nature and spirit” that Buell discusses. (149)  John Elder describes “a human fertility of imagination corresponding directly to nature’s superficial instability.” (139)  Therefore, after reading about the correspondence theory, I definitely subscribed to the belief that Pantheism is too broad of a subject.  Also, if I were to do a research paper, the correspondence theory of nature would be a more tantalizing and a more focused subject.

III: Web Articles

            In the website, “The Poet: A Liberating God”, Joanna Langworthy states that Transcendentalism and Pantheism essentially are the same.  She says that Emerson “warps these terms to fit his own unique spirituality.”  I find that her grasp on the Transcendental and pantheistic philosophies fall short.  Langworthy focuses more on Pantheism than Transcendentalism.  She finally emphasizes the topology that Emerson loved by stating that “Emerson refers to his ideal poet, who is able to express the symbols of “God” found in nature into words.”  She does discuss Emerson’s distrust of science.  However, I found in my research that Emerson believed that science simply did not provide a full explanation for the symbiotic relationship between man and nature.

Also, I find that Mrs. Langworthy does not truly understand the concept of what Pantheism and Transcendentalism is.  Her explanations fall short, her article is poorly written, and she relies on pop-topics like “drugs” to make her paper interesting.

            In the website “Emerson—the transparent eyeball”, Paul Harrison begins with a brief biography of Emerson.  Then, he declares that Emerson turned to Pantheistic ideas after the death of his wife.  He states that Emerson “had an ambivalent viewpoint towards nature.”  He continues to say that emotionally “and practically, his position appears to be one of pantheistic nature-worship.”  Then, Harrison discusses Emerson’s passion for Plato.  Then, he explores Pantheism within selections of Emerson’s essay “Nature”.  He gives the reader subheadings for each quote: Direct revelation, The perpetual presence of the sublime, The currents of the Universal Being, Unity of All, and Ideas in the mind of God.  At the end of his website, he gives an excellent sales pitch trying to hook the reader into believing that Pantheism is an excellent religion.

            I thoroughly enjoyed reading “Philosophical Perspectives from the Vedas: East Meets West” because I finally discovered a link between T. S. Eliot, Walt Whitman, and Ralph Waldo Emerson.  The website discusses all of the writer’s passion for Eastern philosophies, and it also correlates their writings.  The site opens with a quote from Emerson where he states the “magnificent day” he “owed” to the “Bhagavat-Gita.”[sic]  The quote carries on, praising many of the Hindu creations.  The website explains that in 1856, Emerson’s writings began to explode with evidence of Hindu persuasion.  Then, the website quotes poems that Emerson provides clear proof that he is influenced by the east.  The website names the poems: Maya and Brahma.  I found this article particularly interesting because eastern philosophies are elemental in nature; therefore, this would fit in neatly into Emerson’s pantheistic tendencies.

IV: Conclusion

            During my research, I learned many things.  First, I learned the definition of Pantheism.  Then, I learned how Pantheism and Transcendentalism differ.  Because correspondence is a romantic characteristic, I became interested in correspondence—particularly how nature effects man and man effects nature.  That is how I discovered the correspondence theory of nature.  All of Emerson’s essays are filled with nature and natural elements.  Since there has been a reemergence in the people’s interest in ecology, I thought that this is a timely topic because presently, people tend to romanticize nature. 

            There simply is not much research regarding the correspondence theory of nature.  However, I did find some, and what I found helped me to fully understand how correspondence works.  Also, I discovered Emerson as both a man and a writer.  This made my research very interesting because I began to fully understand that nature truly effected his spirit.  Emerson truly believed that if he went into nature, that nature would help to lift his spirits.  (What a transcendental concept—lifting up.)  Emerson believed that the individual owed it to himself or herself to go into nature to relieve themselves from urban areas. Because he has a dislike for industry, he did find that the release that nature provides essential.  When I read about the loss of his first wife, I can understand his need to escape into something bigger. 

            I will pursue my studies around finding a connection between Emerson, Eliot, and Whitman.  I believe that through the correspondence theory, there is a connection.  My research allowed me to narrow my focus.  Before doing this project, I realized that I closed my mind to American Romanticism.  This opened my mind to a whole new realm of readings, and I have to admit that I have enjoyed reading.  I know that I would like to continue reading selections contained in this time period.  Another thing that I learned from doing this research is to look at the ideas of others.  And, more importantly, I learned how to associate this work with current criticism—ecocriticism—in order to keep material like Emerson’s essays current. 

            Emerson is an excellent literary figure to inspire students to reach out to literature.  I believe that many students can identify with Emerson’s descriptive passages about turning to nature as a means to uplift one’s self.  Ideally, I will open the segment of class, by turning off the lights, playing a tape containing sounds of nature, and let the students truly feel the beauty of nature’s voice.  Therefore, the students hear what Emerson would have heard.  Then, I will begin reading a selection from “Nature”.  After I have read the passage, I would explain the philosophies behind them.  I could then explain different aspects of “Nature”: romanticism, transcendentalism, pantheism, and correspondence (etc.).  In order to learn, the students must have all their senses alive.  When aural elements are introduced into a learning atmosphere, all students can be reached.  Emerson’s writings and my research has inspired me to want to invent a more fun experience for my future students. 

            Through my research, I have been introduced to many philosophies that I know little about.  I have been introduced to Goethe works, and I would definitely like to read more.  Then, I would like to read Emmanuel Swedenborg.  Through these readings, I will understand the many minds in Emerson’s “Saturday Club” better.  Also I will read the Bhagavad-Gita because this writing influenced Emerson as well.  History is very important in understanding literature.  Therefore, I will read historical works from that timeframe.

Works Cited

Buell, Lawrence.  Literary Transcendentalism: Style and Vision in the American Renaissance.  New York. Cornell UP. 1973.

Elder, John. Imaging the Earth: Poetry and the Vision of Nature.  2^nd ed. Athens. University of Georgia Press. 1996.

“Emerson the Pantheist” http://members.aol.com/heraklit1/emerson.htm

“Pantheism by Pantheists for Pantheism…”

            http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Thebes/5310/

Langworthy, Joanna.  “The Poet: A Liberating God”.

            http://www.belmont.edu/Humanities/literature/ESSAYJRL.htm

Richardson Jr., Robert D.  “Ralph Waldo Emerson Biography”.

            http://people.brandeis.edu/~teuber/emersonbio.html

 West, Michael.  Transcendental Wordplay: America’s Romantic Punsters and the Search for the Language of Nature.  Athens.  Ohio UP. 2000.

Westling, Louise H. The Green Breast of the New World: Landscape, Gender, and American Fiction.  Athens. University of Georgia Press. 1996.