Transcendentalism

"Trust thyself: every heart vibrates to that iron string. Accept the place

the divine providence has found for you, the society of your contemporaries,

the connection of events. Great men have always done so, and confided

themselves childlike to the genius of their age, betraying their perception

that the absolutely trustworthy was seated at their heart, working through

their hands, predominating in all their being. And we are now men, and must

accept in the highest mind the same transcendent destiny; and not minors

and invalids in a protected corner, not cowards fleeing before a revolution,

but guides, redeemers, and benefactors, obeying the Almighty effort, and

advancing on Chaos and the Dark"

Ralph Waldo Emerson, Self-Reliance,1841

Ralph Waldo Emerson was a philosopher, poet, and journalist in the early 1800s. Aimed at any audience, the purpose of this  passage is to inform to promote individual self-trust. In addition, Emerson sought to encourage individuals by thier own ideas and to trust the truth in their own intuition. This source is a credible one because it is an excerpt from one of Emerson's primary sources. 

During the time this document was written, it was also a time that social reform movements were taking place. Self Reliance was one of very famous essays that Emerson wrote, providing pieces of what Transcendentalists believed. This essay gives people an idea of what Transcendentalists believed: the idea that one must be confident in themselves and strive for non-conformity. Additionally, they must strive for harmony between man and nature. This document had no limits because Emerson stated his full opinions and he was a well respected man that many winters respected.

Emerson provides multiple justifications for why one must rely in themselves. In the passage he states, "great men have always done so, and confided themselves childlike to the genius of thier age..." Great men are always willing to be curious about life and they have absolute confidence in themselves to find the answers to such curiosities. Emerson believed that one must take action and accept the fact that humans make mistakes and not be scared to take action.