"The American Scholar" is a speech given by Ralph Waldo Emerson on August 31, 1837, to the Phi Beta Kappa Society at Cambridge, Massachusetts. He was invited to speak in recognition of his groundbreaking work "Nature" in which he...

This site features the author Ralph Waldo Emerson including the full text of the two essay collections: Essays, 1st Series and Essays, 2nd Series. Included in these essays are "Self Reliance" and "Politics".

[To hear audio, use Chrome browser.] This site offers the text and audio of the poem "Compensation" by Ralph Waldo Emerson.

[To hear audio, use Chrome browser.] This site offers the text and audio of the poem "Concord Hymn" by Ralph Waldo Emerson

[To hear audio, use Chrome browser.] This site offers the text and audio of the poem "Eros" by Ralph Waldo Emerson.

[To hear audio, use Chrome browser.] This site offers the text and audio of the poem "Merops" (Articulate Speech) by Ralph Waldo Emerson.

[To hear audio, use Chrome browser.] This site offers the text and the audio of the poem "Song of Nature" by Ralph Waldo Emerson.

[To hear audio, use Chrome browser.] This site offers the text and audio of the poem "The Apology" Ralph Waldo Emerson.

[To hear audio, use Chrome browser.] This site offers the text and audio of the poem "Thine Eyes Still Shined" by Ralph Waldo Emerson.

[To hear audio, use Chrome browser.] This site offers the text and audio of the poem "Waldeinsamkeit" by Ralph Waldo Emerson.

An extensive biographical profile of Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882) that surveys his early life, education, and his career beginning with his years as a schoolteacher. Clickable, multipage entry allows students to learn about the other...

Discover the complete text of Ralph Waldo Emerson's lecture, "Literary Ethics," delivered before the Literary Societies of Dartmouth College in 1838.

Emerson's famous essay emerging from the Transcendentalist period that celebrates unfettered individualism.

"Self-Reliance" is an essay written by American transcendentalist philosopher and essayist Ralph Waldo Emerson. It contains the most thorough statement of one of Emerson's recurrent themes, the need for each individual to avoid...

Read the full text and listen to portions of Ralph Waldo Emerson's "Self-Reliance."

Read the full text of a collection of essays concerning transcendentalism titled "Essays, 1st Series" by Ralph Waldo Emerson.

Information and lesson ideas pertaining to the famous American thinker. The yellow, left side of the page contains teaching ideas, and the white, right side of the page contains background.

Learn more about the author Henry David Thoreau when you explore this resource. This site provides links to lesson plans and activities for some of his works.

In this self-guided unit, you will read Romantic and Transcendental literature and you will practice the art of persuasion using rhetorical devices, appeals, and refutation while avoiding logical fallacies. By the end of the unit, you...

Biographical note on Walt Whitman that discusses his verse form, his life, and the influence of his poetry. Includes link to Leaves of Grass.

Background information about the literary traditions of the pre-Colonial and Colonial period. Includes information about Native American oral traditions and Native American cultures. Follow the links to the Early American era and to...