Transcendentalism is a philosophy that disdains unthinking conformity of the contemporary society. One of the known philosophers of this subject is Ralph Waldo Emerson. His work, Self-Reliance, is a materialization of the critical view of the movement. The primary theme of his work tackles the importance of an individual and his own thoughts above anyone else. An individual is of value for himself. He is the authority of his own being. Emerson told us that man must not be a conformist. It is of good intentions but the way he expressed it is nowhere positive. Nonconformity is not rebellion just for the sake of individuality and contradictory. It is a deviation for something undesirable and disagreeable. Thus to disagree is to have will to change the undesirable and not just to scrutinize. Society changes through words with works, not mere words. …show more content…
One might interpret this as a man of self-interest. Though individualism is about reliance to oneself, it does not hold the meaning of selfishness. Man should be aware of the circumstances of others as a part of the society. People are social beings that need to take part in the society that never tolerates selfishness as a virtue. According to sociology, man needs to interact in order to survive. He also said to trust yourself. For him, great it is to value and trust one’s self and thoughts rather than to look outside of it. He took out of consideration the fact that men do not have the same measure of knowledge. Man knows things that others might not know of. If all people were to trust their instincts, would they have been alive to this point? If we act on impulse, where would rational action and thinking go? If all men were to view themselves as superior, would peace and order still be present? Men should take in mind that society is and consists of trust and interaction between its