Ralph Waldo Emerson's Address To The Phi Beta Kappa Institutions

Ralph Waldo Emerson was an American essayist and lecturer who lived in the 19th century. To mark the beginning of another semester on August 31, 1837, he delivered his famous speech, ¨The American Scholar,¨ before the Phi Beta Kappa Society at Cambridge. This address aimed to define the ¨American scholar¨ and to inspire the students to strive for excellence. Emerson makes many bold statements throughout his address, such as in paragraph 15 when he states, “...man hopes: genius creates.” With these four words, Emerson effectively differentiates between a man and an extraordinary man; analogously, he compares average students with the students of his audience. Although this quote was originally meant for those prominent students of the Phi Beta Kappa Society, Emerson's words are still applicable for students today. Rather than settling to be ¨average¨ or ¨good,¨ he calls students to reach their full potential, so they can become one of the ¨greats.¨ In order to reach their full potential, students need to do more than simply sit around and wish for their dreams to come true; they need to get up and put in the work to make their dreams become

Today he is recognized as one of the greatest basketball players in American history, but Jordan did not always have that praise. In fact, when he tried out for basketball in sixth grade, he did not even make the team. Instead of allowing other people's doubts get in his way, he continued to believe in himself. He practiced over and over again, made the team the next year, and eventually became the great basketball player society is familiar with today. Jordan´s kind of dedication is exactly what Emerson was calling for. He wants all students to do more than simply hope for their dreams; they need to believe in themselves and physically put in the work to reach their