Essays

In the light of this hope I accept the topic which not only usage but the nature of our association seem to prescribe to this day,--the AMERICAN…

Man is thus metamorphosed into a thing, into many things. The planter, who is Man sent out into the field to gather food, is seldom cheered by any…

In this distribution of functions the scholar is the delegated intellect. In the right state he is _Man Thinking_. In the degenerate state, when…

In this view of him, as Man Thinking, the whole theory of his office is contained. Him Nature solicits with all her placid, all her monitory pictures…

II. The next great influence into the spirit of the scholar is the mind of the Past,--in whatever form, whether of literature, of art, of…

The theory of books is noble. The scholar of the first age received into him the world around; brooded thereon; gave it the new arrangement of his…

Or, I might say, it depends on how far the process had gone, of transmuting life into truth. In proportion to the completeness of the distillation,…

Hence, instead of Man Thinking, we have the bookworm. Hence the book-learned class, who value books, as such; not as related to nature and the…

Undoubtedly there is a right way of reading, so it be sternly subordinated. Man Thinking must not be subdued by his instruments. Books are for the…

Of course there is a portion of reading quite indispensable to a wise man. History and exact science he must learn by laborious reading. Colleges, in…

It is the raw material out of which the intellect molds her splendid products. A strange process too, this by which experience is converted into…

Of course, he who has put forth his total strength in fit actions has the richest return of wisdom. I will not shut myself out of this globe of…

If it were only for a vocabulary, the scholar would be covetous of action. Life is our dictionary.[52] Years are well spent in country labors; in…

But the final value of action, like that of books, and better than books, is that it is a resource. That great principle of Undulation in nature,…

But I have dwelt perhaps tediously upon this abstraction of the Scholar. I ought not to delay longer to add what I have to say of nearer reference to…

Historically, there is thought to be a difference in the ideas which predominate over successive epochs, and there are data for marking the genius of…

Is it so bad then? Sight is the last thing to be pitied. Would we be blind? Do we fear lest we should outsee nature and God, and drink truth dry? I…

This idea has inspired the genius of Goldsmith,[82] Burns,[83] Cowper,[84] and, in a newer time, of Goethe,[85] Wordsworth,[86] and Carlyle.[87] This…

There is one man of genius who has done much for this philosophy of life, whose literary value has never yet been rightly estimated:--I mean…

Man's the elm, and Wealth the vine, Stanch and strong the tendrils twine; Through the frail ringlets thee deceive, None from its stock that vine…

I was lately confirmed in these desires by hearing a sermon at church. The preacher, a man esteemed for his orthodoxy, unfolded in the ordinary…

Yet what was the import of this teaching? What did the preacher mean by saying that the good are miserable in the present life? Was it that houses…

The fallacy lay in the immense concession that the bad are successful; that justice is not done now. The blindness of the preacher consisted in…

POLARITY,[97] or action and reaction, we meet in every part of nature; in darkness and light; in heat and cold; in the ebb and flow of waters; in…

Whilst the world is thus dual, so is every one of its parts. The entire system of things gets represented in every particle. There is somewhat that…

The theory of the mechanic forces is another example. What we gain in power is lost in time; and the converse. The periodic or compensating errors of…

These appearances indicate the fact that the universe is represented in every one of its particles. Everything in nature contains all the powers of…

The world globes itself in a drop of dew.[105] The microscope cannot find the animalcule which is less perfect for being little.[106] Eyes, ears,…

Every act rewards itself, or, in other words, integrates itself, in a twofold manner; first, in the thing, or in real nature; and secondly, in the…

Whilst thus the world will be whole, and refuses to be disparted, we seek to act partially, to sunder, to appropriate; for example,--to gratify the…

The soul strives amain[109] to live and work through all things. It would be the only fact. All things shall be added unto it,--power, pleasure,…

The human soul is true to these facts in the painting of fable, of history, of law, of proverbs, of conversation. It finds a tongue in literature…

This voice of fable has in it somewhat divine. It came from thought above the will of the writer. That is the best part of each writer, which has…

Still more striking is the expression of this fact in the proverbs of all nations, which are always the literature of reason, or the statements of an…

All things are double, one against another.--Tit for tat;[126] an eye for an eye; a tooth for a tooth; blood for blood; measure for measure; love for…

It is thus written, because it is thus in life. Our action is overmastered and characterized above our will by the law of nature. We aim at a petty…

A man cannot speak but he judges himself. With his will, or against his will, he draws his portrait to the eye of his companions by every word. Every…

You cannot do wrong without suffering wrong. "No man had ever a point of pride that was not injurious to him," said Burke.[127] The exclusive in…

All infractions of love and equity in our social relations are speedily punished. They are punished by fear. Whilst I stand in simple relations to my…

All the old abuses in society, universal and particular, all unjust accumulations of property and power, are avenged in the same manner. Fear is an…

Of the like nature is that expectation of change which instantly follows the suspension of our voluntary activity. The terror of cloudless noon,…

Experienced men of the world know very well that it is best to pay scot and lot[131] as they go along, and that a man often pays dear for a small…

The league between virtue and nature engages all things to assume a hostile front to vice. The beautiful laws and substances of the world persecute…

The good are befriended even by weakness and defect. As no man had ever a point of pride that was not injurious to him, so no man had ever a defect…

The same guards which protect us from disaster, defect, and enmity, defend us, if we will, from selfishness and fraud. Bolts and bars are not the…

Thus do all things preach the indifferency of circumstances. The man is all. Everything has two sides, a good and an evil. Every advantage has its…

There is a deeper fact in the soul than compensation, to wit, its own nature. The soul is not a compensation, but a life. The soul _is_. Under all…

We feel defrauded of the retribution due to evil acts, because the criminal adheres to his vice and contumacy, and does not come to a crisis or…

Neither can it be said, on the other hand, that the gain of rectitude must be bought by any loss. There is no penalty to virtue; no penalty to wisdom…

We cannot part with our friend. We cannot let our angels go. We do not see that they only go out, that archangels may come in. We are idolaters of…

Trust thyself:[156] every heart vibrates to that iron string. Accept the place the divine providence has found for you, the society of your…

These are the voices which we hear in solitude, but they grow faint and inaudible as we enter into the world. Society everywhere is in conspiracy…

The other terror[181] that scares us from self-trust is our consistency;[182] a reverence for our past act or word, because the eyes of others have…

A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds, adored by little statesmen and philosophers and divines. With consistency a great soul has…

Our reading is mendicant and sycophantic. In history, our imagination plays us false. Kingdom and lordship, power and estate, are a gaudier…

The world has been instructed by its kings, who have so magnetized the eyes of nations. It has been taught by this colossal symbol the mutual…

Thus all concentrates: let us not rove; let us sit at home with the cause. Let us stun and astonish the intruding rabble of men and books and…

And truly it demands something godlike in him who has cast off the common motives of humanity, and has ventured to trust himself for a taskmaster.…

If any man consider the present aspects of what is called by distinction _society_, he will see the need of these ethics. The sinew and heart of…

It is easy to see that a greater self-reliance must work a revolution in all the offices and relations of men; in their religion; in their education;…