Transcript Transcendentalism - Renton School District

CRITIC’S CORNER
The noted writer Henry James said that
Emerson” had no great sense of wrong…
no sense of the dark, foul, the base.”
How do you think Emerson might have
defended his views against this charge?
WHAT IF…
… Emerson had specifically
addressed the institution of
slavery in this essay. What do
you think he would have said
about it?
EMERSON TODAY
If Emerson were alive today…
What kind of car do you think he
would drive and why? What would
his bumper sticker say? Why would
this bumper sticker be appropriate
for him?
FROM “MEMOIRS” BY MARGARET FULLER
In the chamber
of death, I prayed
In the very early years,
“Give me truth;
cheat me by no illusion.”
O, the granting of
this prayer is sometimes
terrible to me!
I walk over the
burning ploughshares,
and the sear
My feet. Yet nothing but
The truth will do.
How do Margaret Fuller’s
ideas in this poem compare
to “Self-Reliance?”
MAKING CONNECTIONS
How is “Self-Reliance” relevant today? How do his ideas
about the importance of the individual apply to our
modern world?
Consider in your answer:
• His idea that all people should be nonconformists
• His disregard for consistency of thought and deed
• Peer pressure to conform to certain standards.
CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE
What does it mean to be a good citizen?
What are the qualities and actions of a
good citizen? Is it possible to be a good
citizen and a lawbreaker at the same
time?
• Explain your position with evidence from the world around you
CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE, NONVIOLENT RESISTANCE
OR DISOBEDIENCE?
• What are the differences between Civil Disobedience,
nonviolent resistance and just plain disobedience?
• Given What you know about Emerson, Thoreau and
Gandhi’s ideas, How do you classify Occupy Wall
Street?
•
What are thoughts on this movement? Do you agree
or disagree?