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European Journal of Business &
Social Sciences
Available at https://ejbss.org/
ISSN: 2235-767X
Volume 07 Issue 02
February 2019
Available online:https://ejbss.org/ P a g e | 687
A BRIEF STUDY OF RALPH WALDO’S NATURE (ESSAY)
MANJU SINGH
Assistant Professor
NcWeb Maitreyi College. (D.U.)
M.A., M.Phil. Kurukshetra University.
INTRODUCTION
"Nature" is an essay written by Ralph Waldo Emerson, and published by James Munroe and
Company in 1836. In the essay Emerson put forth the foundation of transcendentalism, a belief
system that espouses a non-traditional appreciation of nature. Transcendentalism suggests that
the divine, or God, suffuses nature, and suggests that reality can be understood by studying
nature. Emerson's visit to the Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle in Paris inspired a set of
lectures he later delivered in Boston which were then published.
Within the essay, Emerson divides nature into four usages: Commodity, Beauty, Language and
Discipline. These distinctions define the ways by which humans use nature for their basic needs,
their desire for delight, their communication with one another and their understanding of the
world. Emerson followed the success of "Nature" with a speech, "The American Scholar", which
together with his previous lectures laid the foundation for transcendentalism and his literary
career.
THEME
In "Nature", Emerson lays out and attempts to solve an abstract problem: that humans do not
fully accept nature's beauty. He writes that people are distracted by the demands of the world,
whereas nature gives but humans fail to reciprocate. The essay consists of eight sections: Nature,
Commodity, Beauty, Language, Discipline, Idealism, Spirit and Prospects. Each section takes a
different perspective on the relationship between humans and nature.
In the essay Emerson explains that to experience the "wholeness" with nature for which we are
naturally suited, we must be separate from the flaws and distractions imposed on us by society.
Emerson believed that solitude is the single mechanism through which we can be fully engaged
in the world of nature, writing "To go into solitude, a man needs to retire as much from his
chamber as from society. I am not solitary whilst I read and write, though nobody is with me.
But if a man would be alone, let him look at the stars."
When a person experiences true solitude, in nature, it "take[s] him away". Society, he says,
destroys wholeness, whereas "Nature, in its ministry to man, is not only the material, but is also
the process and the result. All the parts incessantly work into each other's hands for the profit of
man. The wind sows the seed; the sun evaporates the sea; the wind blows the vapor to the field;
the ice, on the other side of the planet, condenses rain on this; the rain feeds the plant; the plant
feeds the animal; and thus the endless circulations of the divine charity nourish man."
Page 2 of 5
European Journal of Business &
Social Sciences
Available at https://ejbss.org/
ISSN: 2235-767X
Volume 07 Issue 02
February 2019
Available online:https://ejbss.org/ P a g e | 688
Emerson defines a spiritual relationship. In nature a person finds its spirit and accepts it as the
Universal Being. He writes: "Nature is not fixed but fluid; to a pure spirit, nature is everything
Emerson uses spirituality as a major theme in the essay. Emerson believed in reimagining the
divine as something large and visible, which he referred to as nature; such an idea is known as
transcendentalism, in which one perceives a new God and their body, and becomes one with
their surroundings. Emerson confidently exemplifies transcendentalism, stating, "From the earth,
as a shore, I look out into that silent sea. I seem to partake its rapid transformations: the active
enchantment reaches my dust, and I dilate and conspire with the morning wind", postulating that
humans and wind are one. Emerson referred to nature as the "Universal Being"; he believed that
there was a spiritual sense of the natural world around him. Depicting this sense of "Universal
Being", Emerson states, "The aspect of nature is devout. Like the figure of Jesus, she stands with
bended head, and hands folded upon the breast. The happiest man is he who learns from nature
the lesson of worship".
According to Emerson, there were three spiritual problems addressed about nature for humans to
solve: "What is matter? Whence is it? And Whereto?" What is matter? Matter is a phenomenon,
not a substance; rather, nature is something that is experienced by humans, and grows with
humans' emotions. Whence is it and Whereto? Such questions can be answered with a single
answer, nature's spirit is expressed through humans, "Therefore, that spirit, that is, the Supreme
Being, does not build up nature around us, but puts it forth through us", states Emerson. Emerson
clearly depicts that everything must be spiritual and moral, in which there should be goodness
between nature and humans.
SUMMARY
In his essay “Nature”, Ralph Waldo Emerson is of the view that nature and the beauty of nature
can only be understood by a man when he is in solitude. It is only in solitude that a man realizes
the significance of nature because he is far away from the hustled life he is accustomed to live
since childhood.Emerson is of the view that nature gives a human being so much; the sun, the
trees, place to live and in return the man gives nothing as a result of which the balance of nature
is disturbed. It is extremely essential for a man to take himself away from the distractions of the
society to understand the importance of nature and what nature has to offer.
Emerson in his essay “Nature” creates a common ground metaphorically and in an abstract sense
speaks to each and every man. Emerson is of the opinion that we take nature and its beauty for
granted, for example, we take stars for granted because we know that wherever we go, the stars
will be with us. What Emerson makes clear is that though we can see the stars and they are
accessible, they are only accessible visibly.
The truth is that we cannot access the stars because of the great distance between the stars and
the Earth. Similarly, we also cannot access the nature, we do not know what it is all about
because of the reason that we think that we are in touch with nature ,but actually we are not ,due
to our busy lives. Creating a link between the landscape and the stars, Emerson states that
everything in the Universe is linked to one another. Instead of being a collection of integrated
objects, he sees nature as an integrated whole. It is extremely essential to see nature plainly
Page 3 of 5
European Journal of Business &
Social Sciences
Available at https://ejbss.org/
ISSN: 2235-767X
Volume 07 Issue 02
February 2019
Available online:https://ejbss.org/ P a g e | 689
instead of seeing it superficially as most of us do and Emerson states that he is one of the lucky
individuals who sees nature plainly. Because of the reason that he sees nature plainly he is living
a life full of peace and solitude. It is essential to see nature from the eyes of a child because a
child sees everything without judging it, from plain eyes. In order to develop deep connection
with nature, it is essential to see nature through the eyes of a child. It is only then that an
individual will be in a position to understand nature. Transcendentalism is also visible in the
essay where the poet is of the opinion that when he is alone in the woods he can feel himself
being one with the nature as a result of which he can also feel the presence of God within him
and all around him. Emerson especially discards the traditional way of viewing the nature i.e.
from the eyes of ancient historians and ancient theories. This results in the loss of excitement and
energy of creating something new as a result of which most of us are unable to discover real
nature.
ANALYSIS
Ralph Waldo Emerson was an American philosopher and poet who sparked the social movement
of Transcendentalism around 1836. America around 1836 was expanding industrially and
technologically, making huge advances throughout the newly prosperous country. Emerson was
special in that, in the very beginning of these advances he could see the possible consequences
that these things would have on human divinity with nature. He believed it could separate us
from the inspiration that the world of nature inspires around us. He had a quest in his life for
unity and self-reliance. His piece, “Nature,” represents the beginning of Transcendentalism,
which teaches that divinity is throughout all things in nature and humanity. “Nature” is a
thought-provoking essay that describes his abstract thoughts about humanity’s relationship with
nature. At first, he argues for a new approach to understanding nature by defining. How he
defines nature is the start of his new approach to how he understands nature. In the universe there
is nature and the soul. He states that nature all that is separated from us and then distinguishes
nature from art; art being natural objects that humans alter for purposes. Nature refers to essences
that are unchanged by humans: space, the flower, and the air. Emerson believes that humanity
has lost a bit of curiosity and excitement in creating new things because industrialization and the
immense reliability of theories already created and histories about nature rather than observing it
on one’s own. He believes in a new approach for understanding nature, by casting out all of
human’s outside theories and historian’s teachings and immersing oneself into nature. This gives
one a chance to provoke greater insight into the world of nature than ever before. He states that
through nature’s forms, it describes its own design, and that other interpretations are not needed
to perceive it. This approach differs from the ones in the past by not relying so much on the
history of past generation’s beliefs of thinkers and, instead, relies on the new thoughts of people
of today and one’s own perceptions of nature by not just accepting past impersonal theories.
When Emerson states the “theory of nature” he means ideas based on principles to explain the
world around us, regarding nature. Nature, to Emerson, which is everything that is not humanity
and things that are unchanged by humanity. When he discusses the theory of nature he states that
scientist have one aim, which is to find a theory of nature, but have been unsuccessful in doing
