Ralph Waldo Emerson Biography

Ralph Waldo Emerson was born in Boston in 1803. With the early demise of his father, the family fortunes dwindled. But his aunty Mary Moody struggled to keep the family together and provided respectable education. Emerson joined the Harvard Divinity School in 1825, but did not take a degree, for some or other reason. From the family, with a long line of church service, Emerson became the minister of the Unitarian Church in 1829. Meanwhile, he was introduced to young Elen Lousia Tucker, a sixteen year old girl, whom he courted and married within a year. During his service at pulpit, Emerson read German Criticism, and works of Samuel Taylor Coleridge and Victor Cousin, which he rehearsed before the congregation. In spite of the promising developments,

He wrote most of his important essays as lectures first, and then revised them for print. His collections of essays were published in 1841 and 1844 respectively. Emerson 's work has greatly influenced the thinkers, writers and poets that have followed him. Emerson continued to make living as a popular lecturer, and he was giving as many as 80 lecturers per year. His earnings allowed him to expand his property, buying 11 acres of land by Walden Pond, where later Thoreau could make some

By the end of the decade, he forgot his own name at times. Emerson 's Concord home caught fire on July 24, 1872; The fire marked an end to Emerson 's serious lecturing career; from then on, he would lecture only on special occasions and only in front of familiar audiences. While the house was being rebuilt, with his daughter Ellen, Emerson took a trip to England, continental Europe, and Egypt. In late 1874 Emerson published an anthology of poetry called Parnassus, which included poems by many others including Thoreau and several others. The problems with his memory had become embarrassing that he ceased his public appearances by 1879. On April 21, 1882, Emerson was diagnosed with pneumonia. He died in Concord on April 27, 1882 at the age of 78 and was buried in Sleepy