Self-Reliance and Other Essays (Dover Thrift Editions)
by Ralph Waldo Emerson
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Book Summary Information
Author: Ralph Waldo EmersonEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 1993-10-13
ISBN: 0486277909
Number of pages: 128
Publisher: Dover Publications
Product features:
- ISBN13: 9780486277905
- Condition: New
- Notes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Tracking provided on most orders. Buy with Confidence! Millions of books sold!
Book Reviews of Self-Reliance and Other Essays (Dover Thrift Editions)
Book Review: Great Collection, Incredible Price
Summary: 5 Stars
Ralph Waldo Emerson is America's greatest essayist and one of its greatest orators. To call him an essayist indeed sells him rather short and is very misleading. Most think of essays as interminable, dry, and academic, full of jargon, polysyllables, and other esoterica making them near-inaccessible to general readers. Emerson is very different. His writing is vibrant and vital, making subjects come alive in a way that is as accessible as it is thought-provoking. He writes about general topics - self-reliance, history, love, friendship - of fundamental importance to humanity but is never pretentious, portentous, or arcane; his writing is indeed so strong and lively that it can be read as literature - or even entertainment. Emerson was most famous in life for oratory and is now best-known for essays but had a poet's soul in the truest sense; he wrote many poems, but a poetic sensibility underlies all his writings. His essays are sculpted with poetic precision; he is admirably concise and knows just what words to use to get attention and desired effect, not needing more. Perhaps more importantly, his style is as close to poetry as prose can be, full of beautiful descriptions, exciting metaphors, and general lushness. Yet he was also a philosopher, conveying classic philosophy in easily relatable form with new relevance and contributing much of his own. Only Plato himself rivals Emerson for combining poetry and philosophy's unique strengths; his essays are strong on all fronts.
Emerson now unfortunately and unfairly has a reputation as a difficult, somewhat antiquated read in many minds. This is a travesty, as very few classic writers are as relevant and accessible. Hard as it may be to conceive, Emerson was seen in life as a popularizer; he wrote for regular people, conveying intellectual material in terms they could easily understand, relate to, appreciate - and, above all, act on. Though one of the most well-educated, well-read, and well-traveled people of his day, he had the rare gift of translating weighty issues to the masses without losing intellectual vigor. Thus, though widely and greatly admired by artists and intellectuals, he was often looked down on by the high-brow. Time has erased this injustice, meaning Emerson can now be enjoyed by all.
It is hard to classify Emerson's essays; he wrote on nearly every conceivable subject: philosophy, psychology, history, literary criticism, ethics, politics, and many, many others. However, his overriding concern at all times was to make his subjects not only accessible but in the most fundamental way relatable. His work was essentially a call to action meant to wake people up from intellectual stupor, apathy, narrow-mindedness, and pre-conceptions. He wanted to take people's intellectual virginity, forcing them to see the truth of Socrates' belief that an unexamined belief is not worth living. No cow was too sacred for him to kick, which led to considerable controversy; he was famously banned from Harvard Divinity School, his alma mater, for decades only to be welcomed back enthusiastically late in life when the school had adopted nearly all the stances it originally condemned as blasphemous. Emerson knew people were held back by inherited inhibitions of all sorts - often without even realizing it - and wanted them swept away so all could reach full potential. On top of everything else, his work is thus the best kind of self-help manual; few writers are as inspirational and fundamentally moving. He had a very real impact on millions of regular people across decades and profoundly influenced artists as diverse as Thoreau, Hawthorne, Melville, Poe, Longfellow, and Whitman. His impact is indeed so titanic that most of these and many others might not have written at all without him; at the very least, their work would have been very different - probably unrecognizable and possibly far less great, if great at all - without him. He continued to have a great effect on later writers, including Robert Frost and his namesake Ralph Waldo Ellison; his reach indeed stretches to the present and shows no sign of disappearing. A true testament to his influence is the fact that several of these writers profoundly disagreed with him, much of their work essentially being a rebuttal; agree with him or not, his stature is such that one must deal with him. The aspect opponents have most often objected to is his relentless optimism, which is really the main obstacle to reading him. His philosophy survived the Civil War - was indeed a far from negligible force in creating and sustaining union spirit -, but the twentieth century's numerous atrocities can easily make him seem so naïve as to be hopelessly outdated. The truth is very much otherwise. Emerson is never more needed than in trying times; it is not hyperbolic to say the world would be a far more peaceful and better place if the hard common sense at his writings' core were taken to heart. Everyone should read him because he helps us find the best in ourselves, appealing to humanity's best instincts to make a better future for both individuals and society.
There are many Emerson collections, ranging from pocket best ofs to collected editions that fill a library shelf. This excellent volume is one of the most widely available and least expensive, making a great primer. With six essays ("History," "Self-Reliance," "Friendship," "The Over-soul," "The Poet," and "Experience") and a speech (the famous Divinity School Address) spread out over 117 pages, it is a representative sampling of his best work. We get a clear picture of what made Emerson great, and several pieces - particularly the incredible trio of "Self-Reliance," "The Poet," and "Experience" - are not only among the best essays ever but are some of the greatest literature period. Any one of them would be worth more than the book's price in themselves, and they have excellent companions.
It is important to realize that this is a basic edition. Many great works are missing, meaning the dedicated will need a more comprehensive version. This is after all a sampler, though, and has the far from inconsiderable virtue of leading one to other Emerson. This should not be anyone's only Emerson purchase but will serve most readers well as their first. Comprehensiveness aside, anyone wanting notes or other supplemental material will need to skip it. The idea of an Emerson book needing such things in his life would have been unthinkable, but changes in language - and, one might argue, a substantial dumbing-down of the reading public - now make them necessary for some. His gist is clear enough, but his vocabulary and, more importantly, his wealth of historical, literary, and contemporary references may be lost on casuals. However, anyone wanting only than a generous introductory sampler could do no better than this, especially considering the near-unbelievable price. One would be extremely hard-pressed to find more practical wisdom in a book of this size or price. Emerson speaks to all, and this book is extremely valuable in letting him speak in an easily accessible and affordable form. This or a more deluxe collection belongs on everyone's bookshelf.
Summary of Self-Reliance and Other Essays (Dover Thrift Editions)
The 6 essays and one address in this volume outline the great transcendentalist's moral idealism as well as hinting at the later scepticism that colored his thought. In addition to the celebrated title essay, the others included here are "History," "Friendship," "The Over-Soul," "The Poet" and "Experience," plus the well-known and frequently read Harvard Divinity School Address.
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