Transcendentalism

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' Transcendentalism' 

Welcome readers! Here, I am going to write down one another blog on the topic of Transcendentalism. This blog is inspired by Megha Ma'am - Department of English, Bhavnagar University. This blog is also a part of our thinking activity. In this blog I am going to share my understanding about the 19th century American movement called - Transcendentalism. 

 • Topic of the Blog :- 

Transendentalism is an American Philosophical movement that influenced American literature at length. So, Megha Ma'am told us to Apply Transendentalism in any movie, novel, poem or song and write views upon that. So Here In this Particular blog of mine I will relate two movies which is based on Transcendentalism. 

• Transcendentalism - An American Philosophy :- 

Transendentalism is a very Formal word that describes a very simple idea. People, mem and women equally have knowledge about themselves and the world around them that  "transcends" or goes beyond what they can see, hear, taste, touch or feel. 

This knowledge comes through intuition and imagination not through logic and senses. People can trust themselves to be their own authority on what is right. 

• ' A TRANSCENDENTALIST is a Person who accepts this ideas not as religious beliefs but as a way of understanding life relationships.' 

• The Key Word for Transcendentalism is Simplicity. 

Transendentalism was a reaction against 18th century Rationalism and Neo - Classicism. The Unity of Human life and God is very Central idea in Transendentalism. Transcendentalism believed that one should directly learn from nature not  from books. Transendentalism lead towards ideas which is - Self reliance and Individualism and they are very much important. Transcendentalism caught the Optimistic mood of America and that is why it became so Popular. 

•  Key Features of Transcendentalism  :- 

Following are the three important main Transcendentalist values or Characteristics.

  1. Idealism

  2. Individualism 

  3. Divinity of Nature 

Let us try to understand in detail about this three major Transcendentalist values or Characteristics.

  1. Idealism :- 

                                 The First main Transcendentalist value or Characteristics is Idealism. The Focus on Idealism comes from Romanticism. As we all know Romanticism - a slightly earlier movement. Instead of valuing of logic and senses,  Transcendentalists put great importance on Imagination , Intuition and Creativity. They wanted to bring back a more ' Ideal ' and enjoyable way of living a life.

2. Individualism :- 

                                          After Idealism Perhaps the most important Transcendentalist value or Characteristics is Individualism. As earlier I have mentioned that Transcendentalism lead towards two important and noticeable ideas and they are - Self reliance and Importance of the individual. They saw the individuals as pure. According to them Human beings are inherently good. 

  Transcendentalists highly valued the concept of thinking for oneself and believed that people were best when they were independent and could think for themselves. So that is how Individualism was at the Central. 

3. Divinity of Nature :- 

                                                   The last and third important Transcendentalist value or Characteristics is Divinity of nature. They did not believe in any organized religion but they were Spiritual. Instead of believing in Divinity of religious figures , they saw nature as divine. They believed that one should directly learn from nature rather than any books.

   Transcendentalists saw nature as Perfect as it was and human beings Should not try to change or improve it. 

 • Major Transcendentalists :- 

  Ralph Waldo Emerson considered as main and centred Transcendentalists. But, Along with that other important Transcendentalists were Henry David Thoreau, Margaret Fuller, Lydia Maria child, Amos Bronson Alcott, Fredric Henry Hedge, Elizabeth Palmer Peabody, Theodore Parker. This all are the names which we can consider as Important Transcendentalists. But Here we are Only concerned with three major names and their connection with the 19th century movement Transcendentalism. 

                 Ralph Waldo Emerson ( 1803-1882)

   

            Henry David Thoreau ( 1817 - 1862)

          Sarah Margaret Fuller ( 1810 - 1850)

•  Quotes on Transcendentalism

Let us see some of the famous quotes on Transcendentalism. So that we can get more clear idea about this movement. 

 • " The Only Person you are destined to become is the person you decide to be. " 

                                          - Ralph Waldo Emerson 

• " The World is but a Canvas to the Imagination. " 

                                    - Henry David Thoreau

• " Nature Provides Exceptions to every rule." 

                   - Sarah Margaret Fuller

• " Lose Yourself in nature and Find Peace." 

                     - Ralph Waldo Emerson

• Movies based on Transcendentalism :- 

Now Let us relate two movies which is based on Transcendentalism. The First one is ; 

  1. ' Eat  Pray  Love ' 

We often arranged movie screening at Department of English - Bhavnagar University. As a part of Classroom studies and better understanding about the 19th century American movement Transcendentalism,  Megha Ma'am also arranged one  movie screening of this movie named - Eat Pray Love which talks about the Concept of Transendentalism. Here are some glimpses of the movie screening. 

           

          

          

  In the movie 'Eat , Pray and Love' the main character Played by Julia Roberts, Embarks on a journey of a self discovery that takes her to Italy, Bali and India. Along the way she meets several spiritual teachers who help her to connect with her innner self and find meaning in her life.

  In Italy, she learns to Embrace Pleasure and Joy in her life, which is very much similar with the concept and idea of Transcendentalism. In India she explores meditation and Spirituality which are also similar to Transcendentalism. It puts Emphasis on Intution and Spiritual connection between humans and Nature.

In Bali she finds love and connection with others, which consistent with the Transcendentalist belief in the inherent goodness of humanity and the importance of community. 

 Overall , we can understand that the movie 'Eat, Pray and Love' does not explicitly reference transcendentalism, it explores many of the same theme amd ideas that are central to the movement called Transcendentalism. 

◇ Into the Wild :- 

   Let us discuss one another movie which is also based on the theory and ideas of Transcendentalism.

 ● Release Date :- 21st September 2007

 ● Directed by :- Sean Penn

 ● Story by :- John Krakauer

 ● Adapted from :- Into the Wild

  

◇ Into the Wild & Transcendentalism:- 

Into the wild is author John Krakauer 's 1996 non fiction account of the life of christopher McCandless. In 1990 after graduating from college, Chris McCandless got rid of most of his possessions, left his family and friends and began a two year odyssey across the united states. His journey ended with an attempt to hike the  formidable stampede Trail in Alaska and live off the land. Unable to find food, McCandless died alone in the wilderness in 1992.

 John Krakauer is a mountain Climber who spent time exploring the Alaskan wilderness Alone. In the movie 'Into the wild' he retraces chris McCandless through interviews with his family and the People he met on his journey, attempting to better understand his motivations and the circumstances that led towards his death. As an adventure himself, Krakauer feels a bond with McCandless.  

Both Chris McCandless and John Krakauer were greatly influenced by the philosophy of Transcendentalism - a 19th century movement believed in the goodness of the individual as compared to society and championed a return to nature and Self reliance.  

Many literary critics have argued that this movie named - ' Into the Wild' is a modern example of Transcendentalism which should take place alongside classics such as Self reliance by Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau. 

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I hope that this blog will be useful to you in understanding the philosophy of Transcendentalism..

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