Transcendentalism Essay Example

đź“ŚCategory: Literature
đź“ŚWords: 1373
đź“ŚPages: 5
đź“ŚPublished: 12 February 2022

“To be great is to be misunderstood,” said Ralph Waldo Emerson, a well-known transcendentalist. Transcendentalism is an early 19th century American literary and philosophical movement; transcendentalists believe that the individual could transcend alone and did not require logical reasoning. They base their ideas on the independence of the individual and nature. Moreover, they also explore the connections between humanity and nature. Transcendentalists believe that the individual had to find their truth by intuition and, therefore, by thinking independently for themselves. The founding father is Emerson; he is the author of Nature, which is considered to be the unofficial manifesto of transcendentalism. Nature explores nature, obviously, and criticizes several aspects of life: the way humanity reveres history by following the steps of their ancestors, and the fact that humanity does not take care of or appreciate nature. Another one of Emerson’s notable transcendentalist writings is “Self-Reliance”. Similar to Nature, it also criticizes conformity and imitation. Nature and “Self-Reliance” intrigued others and so Emerson started a club: Hedge’s Club. Some of its notable members included Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, and Margaret Fuller. One of Thoreau’s notable transcendental pieces of literature is Walden; it is about the voyage of Thoreau trying to find new experiences. He goes out to live at Walden pond. During his stay, he appreciates the natural world around him and highlights its importance to society. Once he feels like he is done living there, Thoreau decides to move because he feels like he “had other lives to lead” (Walden, ). This, overall, is similar to the Walls family in The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls.

The Glass Castle, by Jeannette Walls, is a memoir that follows the life of the Walls family, an extremely unconventional and dysfunctional family. Like Thoreau in Walden, the Walls family moves from place to place; however, this is partially due to their extreme poverty. Rex and Rose Mary Walls, Jeannette’s parents, are responsible for the vast majority of the lifestyle they live. Rex is an engineer and self-proclaimed inventor who struggles with alcoholism, and Rose Mary is mostly an unemployed artist, who often tends to complain about working. As a result, Jeannette and her siblings, Brian, Lori, and Maureen, often do not have food, do not have the nicest clothes, do not have heating in their house, and live in desolate towns. Though it could be considered neglect, the parenting of the Walls seems to resemble transcendental ideas. For example, they do not waste food; even if the food is rotten, they scrape the mold off and eat it regardless. The Glass Castle, by Walls, follows ideas and values similar to those of well-known Transcendentalist writers, such as Thoreau and Emerson.

The Walls family follows an unordinary lifestyle, where they evade society and all of its expectations. Firstly, they spend time living in a desert: “Later that night, Dad stopped the car out in the middle of the desert, and we slept under the stars” (Walls 19). During their stay in the desert, they live like nomads; no electricity, limited food, and barely connection to society. This is similar to Thoreau’s stay in Walden, where he also “lived alone, in the woods, a mile from any neighbor, in a house which [he] had built [himself], on the shore of Walden Pond, in Concord, Massachusetts, and earned [his] living by the labor of [his] hands only” (Walden 868). As mentioned before, one of Thoreau’s goals was to get away from society. The Walls similarly make a transcendental get away from society. Secondly, Rose Mary and Rex are both against welfare and charity, despite their circumstances; they said, “We don’t accept handouts from anyone” (Walls 150). Thoreau similarly took pride in being independent, as he prided himself to have “earned [his] living by the labor of [his] hands only. Lastly, the Walls family does not accept society’s politics or religions. For instance, Rex does not seem to give the same level of respect as other people during a church ceremony;”’ Virgin, my ass!’ Dad shouted. ‘Mary was a sweet Jewish broad who got herself knocked up!’” (Walls 110). Rex does not seem to want to accept values from society; he seems to want to learn his truth, which could explain his response. In addition, Rex and Rose Mary do not allow their kids to learn about what is happening in the outside world: “I'd never known what was going on in the world, except for the skewed version of events we got from Mom and Dad—one in which every politician was a crook, every cop was a thug, and every criminal had been framed” (Walls 193). In both instances, they reject the world around them, whether it is religion or politics. Overall, the Walls family’s aversion and circumvention of society are evident throughout several points in the memoir.

The Walls family does not follow in the footsteps of anyone. In “Self-Reliance'', Emerson criticizes society’s conformity; he believes that one should find their truth independently. Society should not follow the path of their imitation; Emerson says, “imitation is suicide” (“Self-Reliance” 540). Firstly, the Walls family does not care about what others think about them. Worried about what to tell her parents, Jeanette asks Rose Mary what she is supposed to say; she replies, “Just tell the truth, that’s simple enough” (Walls 5). Rose Mary does not care what society thinks about her. She believes that her truth should not be impacted by that of society. Thoreau would justify this by claiming that “if a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music which he hears, however, measured or far away” (Walden 872). Thoreau highlights the importance of nonconformity by arguing that people move at different paces in life and sometimes to a completely different song. Secondly, Rose Mary rejects becoming a teacher. Unoptimistic, Rose Mary’s mother pushes her to get a degree in teaching “just in case her dreams of becoming an artist didn’t pan out” (Walls 69). Rose Mary is similarly unoptimistic in becoming a teacher. Being forced to find a job by her children, Rose Mary becomes agitated. She does not want to become a teacher as she would be conforming to her mother’s expectations. Moreover, Jeanette does not value money; she paints because it is what helps her find her truth and make her happy. In summary, The Glass Castle follows the transcendentalist value of nonconformity. 

Nature is a recurring motif within The Glass Castle. Transcendentalists admired nature because it allowed them to find their truth: “But if a man is alone, let him look at the stars. The rays that come from those heavenly worlds, will separate between him and vulgar things'' (Nature, 489). Firstly, instead of physical presents, Rex decides to give his children stars and planets for Christmas. Rex argues that having a star is better than some kind of toy: “‘Years from now, when all the junk they got is broken and long forgotten’ Dad said,’ you’ll still have your stars’” (Walls 38). Transcendentalists would certainly approve of this because they believe that the individual’s connection to nature is imperative. By giving his children planets, Rex understands the value and significance of nature. Secondly, during their stay in the desert, the Walls family spot a Joshua tree. Though “it was ugly. It looked scraggly and freakish, permanently stuck in its twisted, tortured position” (Walls 52), Rose Mary still finds a way to appreciate it because of the struggle that it goes through. Thus, Rose Mary might have found her truth in nature; the struggle is what makes life wonderful. Lastly, Rose Mary is strongly against wrecking nature. During their stay in the Welch, a mix of rain and poor drainage systems led to a severe flooding problem. Despite several deaths, Rose Mary justifies this by claiming that “this was how nature took her revenge on men who raped and pillaged the lands, ruining nature’s drainage system by clear-cutting forests and strip-mining mountains” (Walls 174). Rose Mary argues that since they did not take care of nature, nature is now not going to take care of them. According to transcendentalists, society should serve as a protector for nature, which Rose Mary supports. In conclusion, nature is a recurring theme throughout The Glass Castle. 

The Glass Castle, by Walls, follows several transcendental values. Firstly, the Walls family avoids society’s expectations on several occasions; for example, they live like nomads for the vast majority of the memoir. Secondly, they do not conform to society’s expectations; “Self-reliance”, by Emerson, criticizes the fact that society wants to learn from its ancestors and not by independently finding their truths. Thirdly, The Glass Castle focuses and reflects on nature often; transcendentalists strongly believed that the individual had to become one with nature and that it is their role to protect it. Though society misunderstood, the Walls family have gone out to live a great, yet unconventional life.

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