Nature- Youth and Purity

[chrisr07]

It seems to me that for all Emerson's talk about the beauty's of nature and the qualities of the "over-soul", he seems to doubt that the average person even appreciates them. He specifically states that the only people who can truly appreciate nature are the youth of the world. "The sun illuminates only the eye of the man, but shines into the eye and the heart of the child". He even goes so far to say that the few adults who appreciate nature still have much of their childhood still present within them. Do you think these remarks are meant to acknowledge the purity of childhood, or bring to light the impurity of adulthood?

[catherinem07]

While I think Emerson acknowledges the purity of childhood, he definitely values the power of education and self-understanding which means he does not necessarily believe adulthood to be impure. Emerson clearly views education as the key to assessing the world around us, asserting that “there is a time in every man’s education when he arrives at the conviction that envy is ignorance; that imitation is suicide; that he must take himself for better, for worse, as his portion” (Emerson 20). This speaks to the idea that as a man educates himself, he becomes empowered with reason which can help him deduce the true nature of a situation and derive his own path. Therefore, while children are naturally pure and I doubt Emerson would contradict this, he clearly believes a path of purity is possible even in adulthood.

[darylg07]

I agree that Emerson sees the purity in both childhood and the wisdom that comes with experience and education, but I think that he believes that the root of this purity is in the ability to put superficial tendencies aside and to appreciate life for what it truly is. He says, "The flowers, the animals, the mountains, reflected the wisdom if his best hour, as much as they had delighted in the simplicity of his childhood" (Emerson 1). This ability is found within childhood because of the simplicity and inncocence associated with such a time. It can also be learned and therefore wisdom can also lead to such purity.

[DOMINIQUE G]

It is true that Emerson puts a large focus on nature, and I believe that this is partly because man so easily overlooks it. As man ages, I believe that we shy away from the naturalistic and pure ways of our original nature, and instead strive to become “civilized” within society. This need to fall into the social and moral structures of our external society causes man inevitably to underestimate the beauty and power of nature.

Due to the fact that the “civilization” of man ultimately removes us from our involvement with and appreciation of nature, it is understandable that a child would be the only one to appreciate its beauty. Although even children are immediately influenced by the external restrictions of their environment, children maintain a sense of purity as they perceive nature as not something that must be controlled as society tells us, but rather something to be questioned and admired. Any adult that wishes to truly appreciate nature must then embody the spirit of the youth.

I believe that this concept speaks to the purity of children. I believe that Emerson would not want to emphasize the impurity of man, (which would undoubtedly offend his audience) but instead display the innocence of children so that he can stress the importance of returning to this innocent state of being—both mentally and philosophically—before one’s true nature can be uncovered.

[gregory]

I think Emerson is trying to bring to light both the purity of childhood and the impurity of adulthood. Children become adults when they lose their innocence by being exposed to the realities of life, either through education, or experience. However, their naivety is usually destroyed by other people. In nature, there are no people to influence ones maturation through life which, Emerson believes, is the perfect place for someone to experience self discovery. Picture this, when someone reads a book, they create a picture in their mind about the setting, how the characters look, and so forth. If one sees a movie based on that book, their picture becomes that of the movie. Before the Harry Potter movies, someone could have taken 100 people to draw a picture of Hogwarts and probably gotten 100 different pictures. After the movie, if that person took another 100 people, they would probably draw the school as it appeared in the movie. Basically, Emerson believes one should discover who they are in a neutral environment, rather than in an influential society because that influential society will create a population with roughly homologous thoughts.