When He Can Read God Directly

While I enjoyed "American Scholar" by Emerson very much, I don't think I would be speaking honestly if I said the same thing about "Nature." There were pieces of it that I enjoyed here and there, but overall I found it a bit difficult to understand.

I found the part where he talks about books to be particularly interesting. In one part he says,

"Meek young men grow up in libraries, believing it their duty to accept the views which Cicero, which Locke, which Bacon have given, forgetful that Cicero, Locke, and Bacon were only young men in libraries when they wrote these books." (pg. 523)

When I fist read this, I literally laughed out loud. There is a lot of truth to it, but I think at the same time Emerson is too keen on passing of the importance of books. Maybe my credibility in that statement can be thrown out the window because I'm an English major, and therefore, books are held in the highest respect to me. His description here about books, however, is incredibly beautiful:

"It came into him - life; it went out from him - truth. It came to him - short lived actions; it went from him - immortal thoughts. It came to him - business; it went from him - poetry. It was - dead fact; now, it is quick thought. It can stand, and it can go. It now endures, it now flies, it now inspires. Precisely in proportion to the depth of mind from which it issued, so high does it soar, so long does it sing." (pg 522)

And while the way in which he sort of brushes off books bothers me a bit, I have to admit he makes a good point when he says that it is not really books that give us knowledge but experience. He says "Books are the best of things, well used; abused, among the worst. What is the right use? What is the one end which all means go to effect? They are for nothing but to inspire."

I can definitely see how Emerson was an inspiration to writers in early American literature. It's almost as though his words act as a sort of call-to-action for writers. He some what stresses an urgency for authors to understand that America is a new country and it must forge it's own identity, especially in literature. I especially like when he says,

"Genius is always sufficiently the enemy of genius by over-influence. The literature of every nation bear me witness. The English dramatic poets have Shakespearized now for two hundred years... When he can read God directly, the hour is too precious to be wasted in other men's transcripts of their readings."

While I didn't really enjoy "Nature" overall, I am grateful for having read it. I think it has given me a better understanding of other authors. If I was given the chance, I would totally sit down and have a cup of coffee with Ralph Waldo Emerson. I think it would go one of two ways: incredibly awkward or inspiring conversation.