Although some of the beliefs of American Puritans were austere, but they completely transformed the life by practically adopting the customs of their Holy Book. ... His most important piece of writings was of religious nature. ... The religious nature of work compelled the writers to employ the serious and persuasive tone to get their message through. ... He cannot be happy and strong until he too lives with nature in the present, above time. ... CONTEXT: Ralph Waldo Emerson is the greatest essayist in American literature. ...

• Word Count: 2593
• Approx Pages: 10
• Grade Level: High School

Henry David Thoreau Henry David Thoreau was a man who expressed his beliefs of society, government, and mankind while living under his own self-criticism. ... The first paragraph of his essay, "Walking," reads "I wish to speak a word for nature, for absolute freedom and wilderness, as a contrast with a freedom and a culture merely civil-to regard man as an inhabitant, or part and parcel of Nature, rather than a member of society. ... The most important friend he made was Ralph Waldo Emerson. Emerson first befriended Thoreau in the fall of 1837 soon after his graduation from Harvard (Mil...

• Word Count: 2638
• Approx Pages: 11
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

Among them, there is rejection of science, clash between Nature and culture, notions of good and evil (duality), human nature, and the contradiction with and opposition to convention and religion. ... Throughout these events, Hawthorne conveys the romantic belief that science corrupts humans and inflames the greed for knowledge that is beyond human limits. ... Like science, culture is seen as a threat to human souls and nature. 19th C America is characterised by a crucial conflict between culture and Nature. ... On the one hand, culture supporters consider it as superior to Nature. They glo...

• Word Count: 9442
• Approx Pages: 38
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

Emerson, however, recognized its greatness, and now most people agree that it was the first book of truly American poetry. ... Behind his work is a deep feeling for life's fundamentals-love, loyalty, and awareness of nature and of God. ... Some condemned the book, but Ralph Waldo Emerson saw its merit. In the 1856 edition, Whitman printed Emerson's letter of praise, which called the book "the most extraordinary piece of wit and wisdom yet contributed to American literature.""...

• Word Count: 3004
• Approx Pages: 12
• Grade Level: High School