Compare And Contrast Nature And The Cross Of Snow Romanticism

By the beginning of the nineteenth century new ideas and concepts take root, as did new forms of writing and literature. Romanticism, a form of writing that values emotions over logic, emerged and it’s influence was felt all over the world. Romantic writers pressed for individualism, idealism, escapism and reverence for nature. In Ralph Waldo Emerson’s “Nature”, “Self-Reliance” and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s “ The Cross of Snow”, we can see that all tree pieces exemplifies romantic values and notions. “Nature” and “Life in the Woods” both speak of the wrongdoings of society and urges readers that life spent in solitude close to nature is the only way to purge yourself of the society’s iniquity. Romanticism focuses on personal emotions,
In the excerpt “ Nature”, Emerson maintains that the human soul has become long contaminated by the injustices of the civil society and in order for one to properly cleanse his inner being, one must retreat into the woods in solitude and survive in the arms of nature, far away from the allurement of a materialistic lifestyle. Emerson starts out his novel point blank, stating that a man needs to “retire as much from his chamber as from society.” (240) Emerson is asserting that in order for a man to completely at ease with one’s thought, we need to turn to nature’s guidance. He later begins an in depth description of the heavenly bodies saying that the “rays that come from those heavenly worlds, will separate between him (humans) and vulgar things.” (241) Emerson is claiming that, when shone upon by the celestial bodies, their streams of light rinses a miscreant of his wrongdoings and detaches himself from the evils in the world. Towards the end of the introduction, Emerson argues that few adults are still able to see the beauty of nature, as “the sun illuminates the eyes of men, but shines into the eye and heart of a child.” Emerson claims that as humans mature, we lose our eye for wonder. Everything is fascinating and exquisite in the eyes of a child, and only a child can truly appreciate the most fundamental things
In “Self Reliance”, Emerson focuses on the importance of individuality, celebration of a simple life and examination of inner feelings. He urges his audience to pay attention to individuality instead of conforming to societal expectations of how you should behave. In the beginning of the excerpt, Emerson says that “envy is ignorance; imitation is suicide.” (245). He is asserting that it is essential for a person to maintain individuality and not to be afraid of voicing out opinions that contradicted what everyone else thought. “A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds, adored by little statesmen and philosophers and divines. With consistency a great soul has simply nothing to do.”(247) In this line Emerson is saying that small and foolish minds feels the need to remain consistent all the time and are not willing to acknowledge new views and discoveries whereas great minds are able to think outside the box and accept new ideas. He urges his readers to “ Speak what you think now in hard words and tomorrow think what tomorrow thinks in hard words again,” Emerson is again telling his audience not to be afraid to change your mind about something and not to be narrow minded about the world about us, just accepting one thing for how it is without any evidence. Romanticism values and celebrates personal identity and Emerson’s “Self-Reliance” is a classic example of this