the melancholy which pervades the lines. The feeling is subdued and the expression luminous. After reading this poem, you may be interested in making the acquaintance of one which is its precise opposite A Welcome, by Charles Kingsley. What is gained by the conception of autumn in terms of melancholy? 24. To the Fringed Gentian. The gentian is a little blue flower which blossoms in the autumn in the New England hills. Can you trace any similarity of thought in Emerson's The Rhodora? 25. The Battlefield. As one reads, one realizes that "peace hath her victories, no less renowned than war." It is, these victories of peace that the poem especially celebrates these, and the splendid qualities of bravery and self-sacrifice which make the victories possible. The stanza about Truth and Error is nobly phrased. Comment fully upon the significance of the phrase " the harder strife." The modern poet Alfred Noyes takes up the same topic in his New Wars for Old. By what arguments would you support the statement that Bryant was the "first American poet"? Picture facing page 25. From the painting by François de Flameng, a famous French war artist. It represents the charge of the French cavalry on the British squares at Waterloo, June 18, 1815. RALPH WALDO EMERSON Boston, 1803-1882, Concord, Mass. Emerson is usually placed at the head of the remarkable group of New England writers which included also Longfellow, Whittier, Holmes, and Lowell. He was called "the sage of Concord," a fanciful designation which at least reveals the fact of his intellectual leadership. He may indeed fairly be regarded as the most prominent American man of letters, because of the direct simplicity of his attitude towards life, his breadth of feeling, the fine distinction of his literary style, and his extraordinary power of stimulating thought in others. He came of a long line of New England ancestors, most of whom had been connected with the ministry. By birth and training he belonged to what Oliver Wendell Holmes called "the Brahmin caste" - that is, the group who considered themselves, or were considered, as set apart like the Brahmins of India, by mental qualities, hereditary and acquired, from the mass of their fellows. That there was a certain element of truth in the appellation must not blind us to the real democratic spirit underlying an aloofness which was in Emerson's case more apparent than actual. He was brought up in narrow circumstances, educated at the Boston Latin School, and entered Harvard in 1817. He "worked his way through college and, though not distinguished as a scholar, he read widely and won the honor of being class poet upon graduation. After leaving college he supported himself for a time by teaching school Iwith his brother he conducted a young ladies seminary " in Boston and studied for the ministry. Ordained in 1829, he became pastor of the Second Church in Boston and served for several years, occupying himself at the same time with public affairs. He resigned his position in 1832, owing to a dispute regarding certain doctrinal matters, wherein he adhered to his own opinion with characteristic independence of mind. This step marked an important change in his life. Although he continued to preach occasionally, he never again was connected with any church, wishing to retain for himself complete freedom of thought. Thenceforward, to the lasting gain of American literature, his chief interest lay in writing and lecturing. In 1832 he travelled in Europe, visiting Italy, France, and Great Britain. In England he met Carlyle, and formed a friendship which was maintained through a life-long correspondence. Much of his thought was influenced by Carlyle's philosophy. Upon his return, in 1834, he settled in Concord, Massachusetts, and began his life's work. His first course of lectures was given in Boston during the following year. His first book, Nature, was published in 1836. This work - "beautiful, obscure, stimulating produced little immediate impression; simply because most people did not understand it. In 1837 he delivered before the Phi Beta Kappa Society at Harvard his famous address, The American Scholar, which stated in unmistakable terms his gospel of intellectual independence: If the single man plant himself indomitably on his in- Such was the teaching which he set forth in lectures and writings throughout his entire life, and it must be said of the teaching that, like Chaucer's Poore Parson, "first he followed it himself." His career was the best comment upon his theory of life. In Concord he worked with a singleness of purpose that enabled him to provide comfortably for his old age; at the same time he was a good citizen and a helpful neighbor; and all the while he was distinguished by the serene self-sufficiency which lay at the core of his philosophy. When a man has gained such complete self-mastery his life is sure to be a happy one, despite the ills that flesh is heir to. Emerson's was such a life. Friendship and honor he enjoyed in full measure, and his fame and influence grew wider as the years went by. He published in all some eleven volumes of prose and two of poetry. Of the prose works, Representative Men and English Traits, which appeared respectively in 1850 and 1856, remain perhaps the most interesting to the general reader. The prose covers a wide range, touching practically everything that bears on human life and conduct. Its influence upon American thought can hardly be over-estimated. "Be yourself," he says, "rely not upon others but upon yourself; aim high, work hard, be cheerful, be helpful.” His most familiar aphorism, "Hitch your waggon to a star," that is, combine ideality with sound common sense and to teach. expresses very well what he attempted to be His last years were peaceful and happy, although clouded by some of the infirmities of old age. He died of pneumonia, contracted while attending the funeral of Longfellow, and lies buried in the Cemetery at Concord. Emerson's poems are not easy reading. They were not written to give aesthetic pleasure or to depict human emotions. They are conceived, in fact, in the same vein as his essays. And as he was much more interested in what he had to say than in the way he said it, his poetry sometimes lacks smoothness and charm of style. But we find in it other qualities, in view of which we may overlook the want of formal perfection. The poems of Emerson stimulate thought and stir the imagination; they show a deep love of nature, and they convey a message that was written "for the strengthening of hearts.” 27. Concord Hymn. The first fight of the Revolutionary War occurred at Concord, Massachusetts on April 19, 1775. A British column sent out to secure some government stores was intercepted at Concord Bridge by the American "minute men and forced to turn back. In 1837 a monument was erected there and Emerson wrote this poem to be read on the occasion of the unveiling. Through their noble simplicity the lines are peculiarly effective. What is a 66 votive stone"? What makes this hymn especially appropriate? Picture facing page 27. The statue of the Minute Man stands near the site of the "rude bridge." You will note that the first verse of Emerson's poem is cut on the pedestal. The statue was modelled by the well-known American sculptor, Daniel Chester French. 27. The Problem. As is the case with most of Emerson's poems, the thought here is vital and stimulating, but somewhat obscurely expressed. Essentially, the lines contain a characteristic expression of the author's views of individual freedom in religious observance. In one of his essays, Emerson said: "Thank God for these good men, but say 'I also am a man.' Each must worship the Divine power in his own way one through "monastic aisles," one through some awful Jove," others through temples that 66 grew as grows the grass." Art and Nature are one; the same Over-Soul inspires both. Behind all the beauty of art and architecture, behind all the preaching of prophet and seer, towers the eternal majesty of God. The Infinite Goodness inspires alike the wood-bird that weaves her nest from leaves and feathers" and "the hand that groined the aisles of Rome." To Emerson formal religion is inadequate; symbols are beautiful, and he can admire them, but there is something above all symbolism. The "problem" is how best to express in the individual life the truth that underlies religion. 22. cowl. The head covering of a monk's costume. 28, 2. vest. Clothing, priestly garb. 5. His awful Jove young Phidias brought. Phidias was a famous Greek sculptor who carved a colossal statue of Jove which was erected in the Parthenon at Athens. 7. Delphic oracle. The oracle at Delphi in ancient Greece was a sacred institution maintained by the priests of Phoebus Apollo. Here one might learn of future events, or obtain advice as to present needs. 14. The hand that rounded Peter's dome, etc. The architect who built the cathedral of St. Peter, or erected the other beautiful Christian churches of Rome, worked according to a careful plan, but the inspiration of God wrought within him, so that he built even better than he planned. 23. the fish outbuilt her cell. The Chambered Nautilus, on page 104. 26. piles. Buildings. Read the poem of Holmes 28. Parthenon. The most glorious temple in Athens, built about 450 B.C. In refinement of design and perfection of execution it has never been surpassed. 29, 17. the fiery Pentecost. See Acts, II. 1-3. The expression here means the divine revelation which inspires all good work. 22. tables yet unbroken. See Exodus XXXIII, 15–19. |