Emerson, Whitman and Thoreau
http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/w/walt_whitman.html
"Always do what you are afraid to do."
-Ralph Waldo Emerson
"Re-examine All You Have Been Told": Emerson, Whitman and Thoreau
"This is what you shall do: Love the earth and sun and the animals, despise riches, give alms to every one that asks, stand up for the stupid and crazy, devote your income and labor to others, hate tyrants, argue not concerning God, have patience and indulgence toward the people, take off your hat to nothing known or unknown or to any man or number of men, go freely with powerful uneducated persons and with the young and with the mothers of families, read these leaves in the open air every season of every year of your life, re-examine all you have been told at school or church or in any book, dismiss whatever insults your own soul; and your very flesh shall be a great poem and have the richest fluency not only in its words but in the silent lines of its lips and face and between the lashes of your eyes and in every motion and joint of your body… . The poet shall not spend his time in unneeded work. He shall know that the ground is always ready ploughed and manured … others may not know it but he shall. He shall go directly to the creation. His trust shall master the trust of everything he touches … and shall master all attachment."
from Whitman's Preface to Leaves of Grass (1855)
WHAT IS THE TONE OF THIS PASSAGE?
"This is what you shall do: Love the earth and sun and the animals, despise riches, give alms to every one that asks, stand up for the stupid and crazy, devote your income and labor to others, hate tyrants, argue not concerning God, have patience and indulgence toward the people, take off your hat to nothing known or unknown or to any man or number of men, go freely with powerful uneducated persons and with the young and with the mothers of families, read these leaves in the open air every season of every year of your life, re-examine all you have been told at school or church or in any book, dismiss whatever insults your own soul; and your very flesh shall be a great poem and have the richest fluency not only in its words but in the silent lines of its lips and face and between the lashes of your eyes and in every motion and joint of your body… . The poet shall not spend his time in unneeded work. He shall know that the ground is always ready ploughed and manured … others may not know it but he shall. He shall go directly to the creation. His trust shall master the trust of everything he touches … and shall master all attachment."
from Whitman's Preface to Leaves of Grass (1855)
WHAT IS THE TONE OF THIS PASSAGE?
TASK (Final Unit Assessment): What are the central themes of
American Transcendentalism? After reading the writings of Emerson,
Whitman, and Thoreau, write a synthesis essay 5-7 pages that defines and
explains the central themes of American Transcendentalism. Support
your discussion with evidence from the texts you have read. What
implications can you draw from these readings that pertain to
contemporary society?
DAY 1
In a quick write, write your first reactions to the task prompt. Add
some notes of things you already know about these writers and
Transcendentalism.
Go to American Transcendentalism web:
Read essay by Allan Sugg "Transcendentalist Principles from Emerson, Thoreau and Whitman in the film Dead Poets Society"
Dead Poets Society clip:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U91Wl2YpkD8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=veYR3ZC9wMQ
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U91Wl2YpkD8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=veYR3ZC9wMQ
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