American Literary History: Transcendentalism Elements
(Borrowed from mentorhigh.com)
Transcendentalism: circa 1840
An intellectual movement that thought we used something more than our 5 physical senses to understand life
and our place in it.
• “Trans” – to go across
• Not a religion or philosophy, but has elements of both
A view held by a group of people during the Romantic Period.
Members of the Transcendentalist movement have greatly influenced literature, even today.
Elements:
1. Nonconformity: Individualism (Non-conformity is good and allows us to fine what is important for each of
us. With non-conformity we look at the importance of individualism, especially that of the common man. The
value of an individual’s needs over those of the society).
2. Self Reliance: Trust yourself/intuition (Intuition will help us go beyond physical understanding of ourselves
and our world).
3. Optimism: All men have equal possibilities/Man is inherently good (A sense of optimism, that there is always
hope for the future. The belief that man is basically good, therefore he will make good choices).
4. Nature: Appreciation of the simple life and the natural surroundings (A return to the appreciation of nature).
5. Oversoul: Connects all to God, Nature, and Man (We are all part of something larger than each part. This
belief draws the line between celebrating the self and being selfish).
6. Carpe Diem: Seize the day
Many elements of the transcendental theory were evident again in the 1960s and 1970s.
• Nonconformity
• Civil Disobedience
• Goodness of man
• Respect for the simple/nature life and nature
• Brotherhood of man
• Seizing the day
Transcendentalism is an intellectual movement that was concerned with the attitudes and thoughts that man
could transcend our physical being and understand life by going beyond the five senses to understand life and
our place in it. Man determines much of what we understand about the world and life through our five senses.
The transcendentalists believed that we use something like what we might call our sixth sense, or intuition to
figure out those things about life that can’t always be understood through the five physical senses.
RCD ELA 11 Unit 3 Task 1; modified 6.24.15