R.W. Emerson as a Dissenter: Transcendentalist Approaches to Literature, Society and Religion

The concept of reform is of crucial importance throughout the Emersonian corpus. Emerson’s emphasis on originality and the passionate appeals he made for self-reliance are all rooted in his reformist approach. In his 1841 lecture “Man the Reformer”, Emerson addresses his audience at the mechanics’ apprentices’ library association in Boston by asking them “What is a man born for but to be a Re-former, a Re-maker of what man has made […]?” and it is with these words in mind that this seminar will deal with a selection of Emerson’s essays that express his dissenting opinions on a wide range of topics, going from social issues to cultural or religious ones. These texts are particularly important for an understanding of Emerson’s role as a cultural critic of 19th century America and, more generally, they are indicative of the reformist energy inherent to Transcendentalism as social and cultural phenomenon.