Transcendentalism

Transcendentalism, as the word is most commonly used, was a philosophical, religious, literary, cultural, and social movement associated in particular with early 19th century New England intellectuals such as Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, and others.

In a larger, more traditionally philosophical, sense, transcendentalism refers to the belief that our existence is not limited only to matters of sensory experience, but that there is something, largely undefinable, which transcends, or goes beyond, that, whether called religious, mystical, or spiritual.

The transcendentalist movement began in New England in 1836 as a protest against intellectualism.

Important writings from this movement are:

• Ralph Waldo Emerson:
  • Self-reliance; Friendship both from Essays, First Series (full text from Project Gutenberg)
  • Nature from Essays, Second Series (full text from Project Gutenberg)
• Henry David Thoreau:
  • Civil Disobedience (full text from Project Gutenberg)
  • Several chapters from the book, Walden: Where I Lived, and What I Lived For, Economy, Higher Laws, and Conclusion (full text from Project Gutenberg)

External links

• Transcendentalism from the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy