American_Transcendentalism

American Transcendentalism The radical aspects of the renaissance in America were chiefly represented by what is known as Transcendentalism. It was a spiritual, philosophical and literary movement that was prominent in the intellectual and cultural life in the New England during the 1830's. Transcendentalism was the name given to an intellectual attitude that was developed by a group of young men who formed a Unitarian discussion group in 1838 that was known as the 'transcendental Club'. And by 1840 they issued a magazine for philosophical discussion known as the 'Dial'. Three big names associated with the transcendental club were, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau and Margaret Fuller. The Term 'Transcendental' The term transcendental was taken from the philosophical writings of the German philosopher and thinker Immanuel Kant. Kant spoke of the 'transcendental knowledge'. When he spoke of transcendental knowledge, he confined it to the knowledge of the 'forms and categories' such as : space,time,quantity and causality, that are imposed on whatever we perceive by the constitution of the human mind. But the transcendentalists extended the concept of transcendental knowledge to include the 'intuitive cognizance of moral and other truths that transcends the sense experience'. They held the view that men can apprehend reality by a 'direct spiritual insight' which they called 'intuition'. According to the transcendentalists 'intuition can transcend knowledge or truths that are accessible by logical argument or scientific enquiry- meaning to say that intuition can transcend knowledge acquired by reason or by sense perception. Making use of this concept of intuitive knowledge or transcendental knowledge the transcendentalists argued that if everyman could apprehend the truth by direct intuition, then any forms of external authority political or religious was unnecessary. Their thinking was supported by 'puritanism' which also emphasized man's capacity for 'direct spiritual insight'. Though the puritans believed in 'Original Sin', they also believed in 'Divine Grace', that when men are enlightened by the 'Holy Spirit' he/she can know the truth by immediate revelation. The term Transcendentalism can also be said as 'Calvinism modified by the Romantic doctrine of man's natural goodness'. Calvinism had the belief in pre-destination. (a belief that humans have no control over events because they have already been decided by God or by fate. it was a theory or doctrine that said that God has decreed from eternity that part of human kind shall have eternal bliss and part of human kind shall have eternal punishment and therefore there is no any use of individual goodness). But the transcendentalists denied the concept of pre-destination and affirmed that 'all men; and not 'the elect few' might achieve a state of grace by casting off external authority, and responding to their own spiritual intuitions. Transcendentalism as a philosophy and a new movement has certain basic assumptions, basic premises, and certain basic principles. Basic Assumption of Transcendentalism. We have seen that it is a philosophical movement that emphasized the individual and individual intuition, and in keeping with the individualistic nature of this philosophy had differences of opinion on certain issues but there was certain common agreement on the basic assumption, that 'it is the intuitive knowledge of individuals that enables him/her to have a conscious union of individual Psyche (soul) with the world Psyche (Over-Soul). According to the transcendentalists it is the ultimate aim or end of human life. Basic Premises of Transcendentalism There are a few basic premises on which the whole philosophy of transcendentalism rest. One of such basic premise is that they consider 'individual as the spiritual centre of the universe.' It means that we can find the clue to nature, history and even to the cosmos in an individual. Secondly, for the transcendentalists they believe that the 'structure of the universe re-duplicates the structure of the individual self', and therefore to understand the universe we need first to know 'the self'. According to them all knowledge begins with self- knowledge. Thirdly, they consider the 'nature as symbolic, a living mystery, full of signs'. Fourthly, believe that 'individual virtue and happiness depends upon self realization'. This self realization depends upon the 'reconciliation of the two universal psychological tendencies' that are there in the individuals. These universal psychological tendencies are: a) an expansive tendency or self - transcending tendency b) a contracting tendency or self - asserting tendency. Expansive tendency is the desire that is in all individuals to 'embrace the whole world', to become one with the world. Whereas the contracting tendency is the desire that is in all individuals to 'withdraw from the world', remain separate and unique. So when we are able to reconcile or balance these two contradicting but tendencies or psychological needs, of being one with the world and of being unique, an individual attains virtue or happiness. The transcendentalists believed that the 'ultimate aim of life in this world is the union of individual psyche with the Universal Psyche through intuitive knowledge'. And this is possible only through a movement from the contractive tendency to the expansive tendency. Basic Principles of Transcendentalism Transcendentalism basically is a form of idealism which believes that reality subsists beyond the appearances of the world. Some of the basic principles of transcendentalism are as follows: ü Human soul is part of the Over-Soul or Universal Spirit, to which human soul returns at death. ü Every individual needs to be respected, as he/she has a portion of the Over-Soul(God). ü This Over-Soul (life-force) can be found everywhere; therefore a separate creation of a holy place is not necessary. ü God can be found both in 'nature' as well as 'human nature'. ü Concern for 'this life' should be more important than the concern for after-life. Emphasis is placed on the 'here and now' ü The most valuable thing in this world is the 'active soul', therefore respect the body. ü Defy fate and predestination (Calvinistic idea of individual's fate being eternally decreed by God) by exercising one's own spiritual and moral strength. ü Emphasis on self-reliance. ü Emphasis on Intuition as a means of communication of truth. Major Exponents of Transcendentalism There were many intellectuals who were attracted to this kind of a pragmatic philosophy and a new form of spirituality. But there are a few names that needs to be mentioned with the origins of Transcendentalism such as Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, Margaret Fuller etc., Ralph Waldo Emerson Emerson was a Unitarian Minister. He propagated his ideas through his 'public lectures' and his two volumes of 'Essays'. His central message was that of 'Self-reliance'. According to Emerson 'every individual shared in the Divinity that pervades the universe, and should therefore learn to trust his/her intuitions even when it conflicts with the traditions and conventions'. He believed in 'infinitude of private man' and if he/she is able to acquire genuine self-reliance, any form of coercive authority would become unnecessary. He was too individualistic that he did not have much faith in institutional changes. Though he sympathized with movements for social reforms, he did not join them, as he felt and believed that 'most important reform was the reform of the individual within himself/herself'. He believed that human spirit and natural universe were expressions of God. Henry David Thoreau Though a considered disciple of Emerson, Thoreau has greater appeal for the twentieth century. He is considered as the most uncompromising of the transcendentalists who expressed his individualism in a 'total rejection of the organized society'. His life was a catalogue of negations. A picture of his life and attitude is given by Emerson when he speaks about Thoreau as follows: he was bred to no profession, never married, lived alone, never went to church, never voted, never paid tax, ate no flesh, drank no wine, never tasted tobacco...''. His negation of all the above mentioned things were not due to his love for self-denial but due to his conviction that he could live most fully and richly by devoting himself to contemplation and communion with nature. To have time for 'self-realization' he repudiated all social obligations and reduced his physical needs to the minimum. His essay 'on civil Disobedience', denounces all forms of organized government, and proclaimed the duty of all individuals to follow the dictates of his conscience. ( Gandhiji and Tolstoi were later influenced by his philosophic anarchism). Margaret Fuller Another Person who was also actively influenced by this movement was Margaret Fuller. She was mainly involved in championing women's rights in America. Her famous writings include 'women in the 19th century', which can be considered as the earliest american exploration of women's role in society. she in her seminal writings applied transcendental principles coupled with a democratic spirit, so as to analyse the numerous subtle causes and evil consequences of sexual descrimination in the world and very specially in the american society that existed then. The transcendental principle of 'self-dependence',which in her opinion, women lack because" they are taught to learn their rule from without, not to unfold it from within," was stressed very much by full Conclusion After having seen the basic assumptions, premises and principles of what is known as transcendentalism, we can say that it is 'the recognition in man, a capacity of knowing the truth intuitively, or the capacity to attain scientific knowledge of an order of existence transcending the reach of sense perception. Practically speaking, transcendentalism was an assertion of the inalienable worth of an individual, and theoretically speaking, it was an assertion of the immanence of divinity in instinct and transference of supernatural attributes to the natural constitution of mankind. Transcendentalism as such was not religion but a pragmatic philosophy, a state of mind and a form of spirituality which emphasized on the 'individual', 'intuition' and 'this life' (Present). It would be incomplete to conclude the discussion on transcendentalism without saying that American transcendentalism at its core was a philosophy of naked individualism, aimed at the creation of the 'new American, the self-reliant man, complete and independent'