With the end of the Civil War in America came the enormous task of inventing a national identity. America desired to sever its ties to Europe and forge a new voice through literature, for it is through the word that a nation expresses itself. However, although the literature of the time had an American content, the form was European. A cultural distinction was needed to elevate America's status in the world, and this could be found by embracing America's wholly individual landscape, using it as a creative force that would work on the way Americans thought and wrote. Emerson and Thoreau perceived the creation of an identity as first and foremost a change in their relationship with nature, and by using philosophical prose, they believed they could influence the creation of an entirely individual nation. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essayEmerson wanted to extend his transcendental idea of ​​the world by writing about the timeless ideas of nature, the universe, and the human being that blended with specific historical moments and the state of society and its relationship to the individual. Emerson believed that by reaffirming the idea of ​​spirit it would be possible to discover a realm of experience beyond the reach of conventional thinking. The material nature of society had reduced life to a sensual experience, and Emerson desired to seek the laws that govern the senses, that which is not immediately visible, the higher laws that govern nature. To do this it was necessary to look into the life of the mind and soul, and find the knowledge that comes only if intuition and concepts work together. Looking beyond what is understood, Emerson wanted to take the material life, that of an honest worker, and make it expressive of a higher being, bringing spirituality into everyday life. He believed that the unadorned life of the American was more expressive of a higher truth and that a reformation of consciousness would restore the harmony of language and nature that society had worn away. Transcendentalist thought believes that all of nature has a moral meaning and that the further humanity distances itself from nature the greater the corruption of these moral meanings. To define oneself and the Nation in an original way it was necessary to return to the origins of life, to the deepest past, to the truths that precede human history and to the foundations of human existence. If Americans could shed the veneers that society imposes, they could develop a unified vision of the world and restore America's fundamental relationship with words. For Emerson's ideas to succeed, he had to work from the assumption that, once presented with the facts, all Americans would long to find an individual spirituality that elevated the nature of their menial work and brought a higher truth into their daily lives. However, if all Americans were to follow Emerson's example, it would be necessary to retreat to rural environments, for all of society to return to nature, and in doing so tear down the industrial society that America had worked so hard to build. A company on the move, growing and constantly looking to the future needs a stable structure and a reliable workforce in every field. It's all very well to want a more fulfilling life for your fellow countrymen, but if that can only be achieved by neglecting the country as a system, then the society that gave someone the chance to find a higher truth may very well fall apart. . This idea bases itsalso succeeded on the belief that human beings are intrinsically good and altruistic and would reject material life for a lifestyle that would bring them closer to nature and the universe, and on the fact that America is now the most important country in the world. the richest country and the only superpower shows that it was a choice that all men were not willing to make. Thoreau took Emerson's thinking to the next logical step, believing that knowing America would come through knowing oneself. America was going through a period of mass industrialization and social unrest with the abolition of slavery and social causes such as women's liberation. Thoreau believed that by transcending to a higher spiritual level of existence Americans would lose the idea of ​​the selfish self and find a broader concept of form and truth. American philosophy has always been the idea of ​​writing a self, of creating a social utopia that could be echoed throughout the world. Thoreau also recognized that American identity depended on a sense of place, and that by mapping the land and terrain, and being in a constant state of transition and movement, Americans could only further their search for the ideal society. Believing that history and geography were unnecessary in interpreting the world, he sought to encourage the philosophical idea that the world could be created by individuals through self-regulation. By exploring the inner self and the universe beyond and removing the needs of the self, it would be possible to remove state structures and have a democracy of individuals. Since history was open to manipulation, a truer discovery of the world could be found through the universal. strength recognized in nature and experienced through nature's constant present tense. Individuals could cultivate a sense of moral duty and in doing so discover the invisible law of conscience that is superior to state law. It is the idea that the law of consciousness of individuals was aligned with the law of nature, that nature and culture should be one and that all cultivated laws are secondary. These ideas place a lot of faith in the individual and the possibility of their success depended entirely on the interpretation of what the individual believes expressive of a higher truth. It works on the belief that all individuals, by nature, are honest and sincere and, above all, moral. By placing such faith in the individual, however, Thoreau presents the possibility, as his writings are open to interpretation, for individuals of an inherently selfish, greedy, or hateful nature to justify that nature because they have searched for themselves and found their true nature, although although the morality found would be the antithesis of Thoreau's writings. When he talks about the universal force recognized in nature, he sees America as a kind of universe, presenting a universal idea and way of life through which America could set an example for the rest of the world. This is also based on the assumption that when other countries around the world are presented with these ideas, they will follow suit. This does not take into account the possibility that this lifestyle might be rejected, and by being so arrogant about the success of the idea, they immediately exclude any country or civilization that does not wish to pursue a lifestyle in the wake of America. The practical needs of society also precipitate the failure of Thoreau's teachings, as society would remain stagnant if all Americans left their cities and their jobs in search of their own Walden. America was founded not just by people who wanted a better lifestyle, but by a selfish desire to improve their lifestyle.I'm not saying it's wrong for people to want to improve themselves or the conditions they live in, but the idea of ​​creating a more prosperous and comfortable lifestyle is a naturally selfish act. As society grows and develops in a positive way its people become increasingly accustomed to the convenience offered by an industrial, and now technological, age, and therefore less willing to give up the material luxuries that society has provided them. The spiritual needs of the individual are forgotten as people become more obsessed with everyday life and lose the idea of ​​a possible higher truth and natural law, due to prevailing cultural concerns such as putting food on the table and providing food. bills paid. Philosophizing about the nature of life and mind, body and soul also requires a naturally curious nature, a degree of intelligence and a desire to become more spiritually aware, and if these are not already present in the individual it is all the more difficult to convince such an individual to make such a change in their lifestyle. The relationship between the State and the individual also interferes with the individual's search for truth through spirituality, as it provides the individual with another authority to respond to, and is all the more present as it governs the individual more visibly than that of the State . eternal laws of nature. Humanity's development and continued dependence on machines only exacerbates the loss of connection with nature. Nature is disrespected in exchange for man-made objects that have become practical participants in the creation and growth of society. In the cities there is a completely unnatural cultivated countryside, a sort of man-made nature whose purpose is to give the impression of a society in contact with nature and that even in highly populated areas there are places where l man cannot develop.One It must also be remembered that in attempting to write the nation both Emerson and Thoreau looked at life in a completely idealistic way, a nice idea, but completely far-fetched when one considers the nature of man, which the story shows her to be selfish and greedy. Edgar Allen Poe, however, believed that the truth of the self lay in the alienation of one's self, and that to be American was to be locked within the self since there were no refined standards of living or established cultural tradition. Contrary to the beliefs of Emerson and Thoreau, Poe desired to push emotional experience to its limit. He believed that art was limited to a pure product of the mind and that through his characters it could embrace the extremes of the psyche. He believed that literature, much like the self and landscape of America, should be explored and developed into something wholly American. He did not believe in returning to nature because he was aware of the true nature of humanity. He wanted to encourage his readers to ask themselves if they could trust what they saw, believing that the extreme conditions of the psyche were the truest form of experience, and these would surpass the ability of language to manage the expression of these emotions, showing that the Language is exclusively a form of communication and one that contains less truth than Emerson or Thoreau might have you believe. He was similar to his predecessors, however, in that he believed in a complete retreat into the mind to discover the truth of oneself. The spiritual needs of the individual are neglected due to the practical needs of society, because although religion is a major part of modern American life, for most people it is secondary to the cultural needs that dominate the modern lifestyle. Transcendentalist thought attempted to provide Americans with accompaniment 1998