Transcendentalism vs. Anti-Transcendentalism

shawanne wrote:In The Scarlet Letter, the transcendentalist themes include the idea of nature being a freeing-ground that lets whoever inside it gain power and youth. This is parallel to Emerson’s ideal that ‘In the woods is perpetual youth…etc.’. His ideas of individuality over society also echo what Emerson had stated in Self-Reliance, that we should trust ourselves (Hester’s courage), and Hester’s relationship with Pearl also echoes an intrinsic study of interconnection with the things around us. However, Hawthorne’s ‘darker’ themes, particularly that of Dimmesdale and Chillingworth with their unhappy endings, are opposite of the unlimited potential beliefs of the Transcendentalists. If the unlimited potential theme was there in the story, the characters probably wouldn’t have suffered as much, this comment relects a really ingrained mastery of this concept of the Transcendentalists, Shawanne. and the strict and grave bearings of the Puritan society (society over self) also echoes a somewhat gloomier feeling than Emerson or Thoreau, and put forth more anti-transcendentalism than transcendentalism. Not necessarily, because Transcendence incorporates transcending over societal conditioning, gloomy or not. And our modern day application of Transcendentalism absolutely includes this exact quality.

Before the climaxing of Moby-Dick, the air of the story was much more hopeful and Ahab did have hope that he would eventually track down and kill the whale; this hopeful attitude reflects the Transcendentalist view of unlimited potential and self-trust (Self-Reliance). He showed, at the beginning, an unparalleled individualism and courage. Right. After the climax, though, when the prophecy is revealed, the storyline descends into a much less hopeful atmosphere, with Ahab starting to doubt himself and ultimately ending up getting killed and having the whale escape. This is exactly the reverse of what it felt like in the beginning of the story, revealing an Anti-Transcendentalist side hidden underneath the seemingly Transcendentalist story. Ahab’s doubt of himself shows that Melville, although having some Transcendentalist qualities, does not (or does not appear to, anyway) believe in unlimited potential of the being. Shawanne, your identificaiton of the issue being Ahab now doubting his abilities as the issue is a fine distinction. good work there, in applying the earlier concepts we've discusses with how our it's our mind at the core of the transcendence or not. His goal no longer becomes ‘rational’ as he is starting to go into ego-mind overdrive, succumbing to his thoughts of revenge; this is a thoroughly non-transcendentalist idea. Precisely. This "over-drive" in today's discussion of the ego-mind would be labeled as destructive emotions, by the Dalai Lama. Emerson and Thoreau’s views differed greatly from this as they both believed in the power of nature to heal and show us the way (Melville included aspects of nature in his story, too, but in a more rough and dark way—the whale, Ahab’s enemy, is a part of nature), plus their views on self-trust differed greatly if we’re looking at Ahab’s breakdown. So while all of these authors have somewhat crossed the same paths in some parts, they ultimately walk on different roads. Well done, Shawanne, you're really mastering these concepts in application, making quality distinctions, rather than just speaking in an easier, more generalized way.
...to be edited somewhat. o.o;