Ralph Waldo Emerson

American, 1803–1882

Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882) was an American essayist, lecturer, philosopher, and poet who led the Transcendentalist movement of the mid-nineteenth century. His essays 'Self-Reliance' and 'Nature' became foundational texts of American individualism. As a mentor to Henry David Thoreau and an inspiration to Walt Whitman, Emerson shaped the course of American literature and thought. His call to trust one's own instincts and to find the divine in everyday experience continues to resonate.