Transcendentalism is a philosophy that became influential during the late 1700's and 1800's. Ralph Waldo Emerson was a central figure in the American Transcendentalist period. Emerson believed that man can only find truth within himself. Emerson emphasized the importance of self-reliance and individuality in his essay, "Self-Reliance". In his essay, Emerson defines self-reliance as a search for inner peace that can be achieved only by finding ones own personal fulfillment. Non-conformity can be defined as the refusal to be similar or identical to an established or conventional creed, rule or practice. The advantages of a non-conformist society are the flavor and satisfaction of a fulfilled life.
"There is a time in every man's education when he arrives at the conviction that envy is ignorance; that imitation is suicide; that he must take himself for better, for worse, as his portion.". No man should imitate another, because that imitation slowly kills his own individuality. With out distinctive personalities and behaviors man is doomed to live a bland, mundane life. Each person has a unique contribution to make to society, without these individual contributions, the American culture will lose its zest. ".Though the wide universe is full of good, no kernel of nourishing corn can come to him but through his toil bestowed on that plot of ground which is given to him to till". Man should be content with what he has and should not envy those who have more. A man should not desire to be anything more than he was meant to be.
The standards for conformity are often established by the general consensus of the norm, pop culture and the rules of organizations such as religions. "We but half express ourselves, and are ashamed of that divine idea which each of us represents.". Many times an individual will conform to society to avert ridicule and jeers. Conformity is the route for cowards that are not able to stand up for what they believe in.