Walt Whitman Vs Emerson

As stated in the Declaration of Independence, America was built on the principles of “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” These political ideas bred a type of individualism never seen before. Fueled by these ideas and America’s diverse economic and cultural backgrounds, writers like Walt Whitman and Ralph Waldo Emerson came to embody American literature. Two pieces by these writers that portray their unique individualism are Song of Myself and Self Reliance, respectively. While both works tackle the perplexing concept of self, their differences are staggering, as would be expected from a transcendentalist. Among the obvious is that Song Of Myself is written as a poem while Self Reliance is written as an essay. This contributes to
It insists on self reliance as an ideal and contrasts it with conformity. Emerson’s relation to society and community evolve through the piece but generally label the establishment as detrimental to individual thought. His radical opinion’s on self reliance are perhaps best exemplified in the passage where he asks, “are they my poor?” (Self Reliance) regarding societal expectations to provide for the impoverished. He continues on to say, “I tell thee, thou foolish philantrophist, that I grudge the dollar, the dime, the cent, I give to such men as do not belong to me and to whom I do not belong.” (Emerson) In this quote, Emerson is essentially saying that if man’s actions are not genuine than “their virtues are penances.” (Emerson) He speaks similarly of an abolitionist he assumes to be a bigot and calls his belief an “uncharitable ambition with this incredible tenderness for black folk a thousand miles off.” (Emerson) This effectively portrays his animosity towards society as a whole. In his mind, the conformity of those who take part in established institutions and borrow ideas from others is detrimental to self. Following his critique on societal customs, Emerson reveals his ideal man. One who rejects the study of a singular profession and alternatively tries them all. This “sturdy lad…teams it, farms it, peddles, keeps a school, preaches,
Whitman describes himself as “the mate and companion of people, all just as immortal and fathomless as myself, (They do not know how immortal, but I know.)” (Song of Myself) This passage has many meanings to different people and shows Whitman’s desire to influence all people, despite their possible lack of knowledge. Despite this intertwined relationship with people, Whitman claims that all the different aspects of society, negative and positive, “are not the Me myself.” (Whitman) Unlike Emerson, Whitman seems to accept the world for what it is rather than prescribing definitive solutions. Instead of insisting on a formula of how to achieve the ideal self, Whitman says, “I have no chair, no church, no philosophy, I lead no man to a dinner table, library, exchange, but each man and each woman of you I lead upon a knoll, my left hand hooking you round the waist, my right hand pointing to landscapes of continents and the public road. Not I, not anyone else can travel that road for you, you must travel it yourself”. (Whitman) This passage insists on the simplicity of life. Whitman suggests that no proper guidance is needed to travel the journey of life for yourself. Again, he comes off as a personable figure, in accord with his community. His inclusion of females in this passage also reveal his tolerance. This notion of inclusion and equality is furthered when he says, “of