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Essay / Research Paper Abstract
A 5 page paper which examines Emerson’s assertion, “Whoso would be a man must be a nonconformist,” and relate this quotation to the writer’s own experience. No additional sources are used.
Page Count:
5 pages (~225 words per page)
File: TG15_TGselfre.rtf
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Unformatted sample text from the term paper:
which he boldly declared, "Whoso would be a man must be a nonconformist" (1128). It is recommended that the student who is writing about this topic consider the historical
epoch in which Emerson was making that statement. He feared that what America of the nineteenth century was labeling as democracy was, in fact, nothing more than complacency and
conformity. Now that the Republic was off and running, Emerson feared that the individual would be lost in the shuffle of national progress. According to Emerson, it is
a mans individuality that shapes his character and it is these diverse individual attributes that are definitive threads of the uniquely American social, cultural and political tapestry. He explained,
"The objection to conforming to usages that have become dead to you is, that it scatters your force. It loses your time and blurs the impression of your
character... Do your work, and you shall reinforce yourself. A man must consider what a blindmans-buff is this game of conformity" (1130). Simply stated, conformity is nothing more
than a game of follow the leader, and as a result, society becomes stagnant and citizens have lost their capacity for self-reliance, or the ability to chart their own individual
course. Although by all intents and purposes, Ralph Waldo Emerson seemed to live a conventional life, he never lost sight of the inner characteristics that distinguished him from
his counterparts, such as other Transcendentalist authors like Henry David Thoreau and Nathaniel Hawthorne. Through his writing and his naturalist philosophy, Emerson demonstrated he could remain true to his
country without sacrificing himself in the process. This essay suggests that man could assess his individuality by looking inward, contemplating his soul through solitary contemplation. Emerson was perceptive
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