The Age Of Faith (1600s)

The Age Of Faith (1600s)

What does it mean to be an American in William Bradford's 'Of Plymouth Plantation'?

In the excerpt from Of Plymouth Plantation, William Bradford employs references to grace and divine mission to inspire the people to take the journey to the new land in order to escape oppression be comforted by God's care and to honor their moral duty to spread Christianity.

"In the agitation of their thoughts, and much discourse of things hereabout, at length they began to incline to this conclusion of removal to some other place. Not out of any newfangled-ness or other such like giddy humor by which men are oftentimes transported to their great hurt and danger, but for sundry weighty and solid reasons, some of the chief of which I will here briefly touch." (Bradford Chapter Six)

If you wish to read the complete document it can be found here: http://www.histarch.illinois.edu/plymouth/bradford.html

I picked this passage because I liked the perspective of people who don't have everything with the snap of their fingers. I can relate to hard times and having to move because of hard situations that develop, and this passage directly calls to attention how people just travel frivolously which I have always found hard to appreciate.

Journal Entry July, 1937

We were dandelions among rocks, fighting swords with bamboo rods and both sides knew we were losing. I could hear the whir of tracks on big green monsters trampling down the street, mei-mei held me close in a crowded room of people. On the breeze floated the stench of roasted human flesh of people who didn’t get away. They had already taken our mu-qin,I had seen what had happened to her through the cracks of a bamboo screen.

            The Japanese were monsters, or maybe they just owned monsters. Tall, dark men who looked just like ours but they were guaiwu, they were invading our city Nanking, with no mercy. I had already heard tales of forced incest, and rape of infants, details were grotesque but even I had witnessed it with my own eyes. My own mu-qin defiled in the bed of her wedlock, my fu-qin destroyed while protecting us. I could see a little boy, sniffling in the corner an intense burn like wildfire over his arm; he hugged it to his chest. He couldn't have been but five.

            No men were in the room except for the elderly; my own grandparents had died long ago. I wished for that release now, the sweet pungent taste of death lingered on my tongue I could feel it coming even before I heard their march. A wild frenzy with no rhythm, a senseless drone of never-ending footsteps the death warble. I wished it quick; I wished it to come soon and unexpectedly.

            I looked over once more at the young boy clutching his arm; I could hear the steps closer. His mother lifted him up into her arms and caught my eye, a tear spilled over and she was next to me before I could speak. She dropped the boy in my arms, he tried to cry out but she shushed him. I could feel the eyes of everyone in the room on me and on her, yunxing, Run she whispered, my sister looked at me and nodded. Nudging me from her lap, I looked back just once then slipped through a back door as the front entrance slid open. A few people flooded behind me but I could hear the thrum of bullets whizzing through the air.

            With the injured little boy in my arms, the taste of death slipping from my lips and the pungent smell emanating through the dry air I ran. I ran away from the rape and horrific genocide of Nanking:of my little world.

           

Summary from Ch. IV From “Of Plymouth Plantation” by Bradford	Cite Reference to Puritanism/God	What is the reason for leaving?
1.        Conditions are harsh People die; Wisemen advise to make a change. They do not do this half heartedly.  Now they will explain the reasons for leaving.
2.       Those who are deciding to leave realize that not all can endure the hardship of leaving their families and their lifestyle, although it is harsh.  “Some preferred and chose the prisons of England rather than liberty in Holland”.	“enjoy the ordinances of God in purity”	1.       This highlights the existing lifestyle of oppression. 2.       This highlights the loss of leaving family and friends and the risk of leaving what is “known”. 3.       Also, presents the allure of freedom to practice their religion which is contrasted against the oppressive state presently.
3.       Those who are deciding to leave look at another group who might not leave because they are young and do not feel the urgency.  This further supports their conviction to “dislodge” or move to a better place.	Proverbs xxii.3 :  A wise man seeth the plague and hideth…	1.       They recognize the dangers of waiting and then not being able to leave.
4.       Children are oppressed by parent’s strife and by harsh conditions of life.  They are old before their time and many leave as soldiers or via extravagant and lewd choices.	Dishonoring God by not honoring mother and father	1.       They want to avoid losing their children as has been done.  So new world will offer family protection.
5.       Great Hope to Spread Gospel in the New Land.	Divine Mission….	1.        They feel conviction to spread word of God.

Summary from Ch. IX From “Of Plymouth Plantation” by Bradford	Cite Reference to Puritanism/God	What is the reason for leaving?
1.       Man caught disease, died, and was thrown overboard	A man who was going against God by harassing other shipmates was stricken by ‘God’ with a sickness and was first to be thrown overboard ironically to his expressed want to throw his shipmates overboard.
2.       Storm came and people were scared the boat wouldn’t hold up but they fixed he bost	“So they committed themselves to the will of God and resolved to proceed” they are referring to the shipmates getting back on track to go to the New Land which is what God has ordained them all to do
3.       A man was thrown overboard during a storm but was saved by a rope he grabbed on and was lifted up by	It was God’s will that John Howland survived
4.       People headed to Cape Cod	It was God’s will they made it through the dangers during the journey to Cape Cod
5.       Talk of the naming of the Cape
6.       All that lived the journey got safely to the Cape	They all prayed and thank God for semi-safe passage
7.       Overview of all that happened	Quotes Scripture 12
8.       Opinion on how God saved them all	Nothing but quotes and mention of God

Anne Bradstreet (1612-1672)

If you want to read the complete document you can at this link: http://www.vcu.edu/engweb/webtexts/Bradstreet/bradhyp.htm

Recently I read Anne Bradstreet's 'In Reference to her Children' and I wish that I had parents who treated me just as the mother bird did her offspring. Trusting their life choices and raising them with love and care, it makes me long for something just as seemingly wonderful, something pure and sweet without bitter undertone or sour aftertastes.

If you wish to read the poem it can be found here using this link: http://www.poetryfoundation.org/poem/172960

Dear Diary,

Today I have written another poem, its about my husband who is traveling as of now. I wonder what his eyes lay upon at this very moment. Maybe he stares at the moon with sweet thoughts about our children and honeyed words that slip from his lips ans he includes us in his prayer. Maybe he asks God to keep us safe, as I do him, every day, I also wonder what adventures he may have endured. What jokes as he heard and tittered to softly as he does. I miss that laugh, that could fill a room but drifted only like a feather, so light but powerful. How I miss the stories, to hear of his journey now instead of long from here would be wonderful, but alas he is not here. And that moment will have to wait until his return. Until tomorrow, sweet diary for now I must say my prayers.

Your quiet poet,

Anne Bradstreet

Here below I've tried to replicate Bradstreet's style with a modern twist, a typical overused subject of unrequited love:

If I brave a smile, it doesn’t mean happiness

If my heart was easily broken it doesn’t mean of me less

If ever I felt true sadness and despair it was by your side

Still I long for your presence and when you’re there I hide

I prize the miniscule shards of my heart spread across your marble floors

The broken handles of diamond on all of my locked doors

Our friendship I prized like golden harp strings under an angel’s fingertips

But the love I felt yearned to burst from the levees and sometimes it slipped

It was foolish, a mistake, and if I could I’d take it back, I want you back

May God grant my prayers to gift me with what I lack

Then maybe I can go without missing you maybe I’ll persevere

That moment maybe then will I move and no longer be stuck waiting here

I'm not so sure Anne Bradstreet went through a plight of any sort I've heard nothing about women suffrage. But I know that she was not recognized until after her passing probably for the portrayal above of her which is of her not being allowed to speak first because of her gender. I don't think it can be directly related to one of her poems but she does seem to portray herself as a 'I live for my husband' type or a 'All I need to be in life is a housewife' that liked to indulge herself in poetry which she never actually got to see in print. 

Johnathan Edwards (1741)

Sinners at the Hand of an Angry God

Topic Question:

What is society's biggest fear?

Society today, everyone's mindset is centered on romance, which isn't helped by the heavy influence of social media. I believe the most powerful fear would be about two different aspects of being loved.

Maybe the most common felt at some point by all is the need to be loved by your peers, parents  and everyone around you. And maybe the emotion you yearn for isn't as strong say as love more than liked but the concept is the same. 

Everyone wants to fit in, this is despite age, race, or stereotypical clique you generalize yourself as. The new kid who moved in from New Jersey, the only girl on the block who hasn't been invited to a party, etc., they all want friends and admiration it's natural human nature,

The second of these two loves is the literal romantic sense of love. Today advertised and utilized are date sites 'guaranteeing marriage' or second dates' for the sole inner realization that no one wants to be alone. Because alone seems to stretch into forever, almost everyone wants a companion and television sows like 'Teen Moms' and 'Bachelor' or 'Bachelorette' don't assist the thought that a significant other isn't important especially for teenagers. 

No one wants to be alone forever but when everyone around you as someone it seems that you will be even though that's not the case. Fear simply drives us and this fear I believe is the foundation.

Favorite Passage

I hated the entire sermon, it was overblown and over-exaggerated it was hard to find a specific part to like let alone impress myself with. But I can at least relate with one particular section of the fiery sermon that I feel sums the entirety of every lesson I have ever learned during Sunday School in all the different branches of Christianity that I've attended.

Excerpt from Sinners at the Hands of an Angry God

The God that holds you over the pit of Hell, much as one holds a spider, or some loathsome insect over a fire, abhors you, and is dreadfully provoked: his wrath towards you burns like fire; he looks upon you as worthy of nothing else, but to be cast into the fire; he is of purer eyes than to bear to have you in his sight: you are ten thousand times more abominable in his eyes than the most hateful venomous serpents is in ours.... (Edwards 104)

For you to better understand the message of the sermon I have create a Power Point which I will link below:

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2UpXdOcljf1c0ZJWkhTdDZnYkk/edit?usp=sharing

The Slave Narrative

Olidah Equiano's account of the Middle Passage

If you wish to read this here is the link: http://websupport1.citytech.cuny.edu/faculty/pcatapano/lectures_immigration/equiano.html

What does it mean to be an American at this time?

England colonists newly-dubbed Americans were slave owners. Though they were not born on or of this land they owned it, and from Africa they brought slaves with them. Slaves that they mistreated, to be an American is to be rich and well-off, to be for freedom while making captive of those deemed below you.

Equiano used descriptive language to express the hardships and cruelty he experienced and observed on the journey in the 'Middle Passage' and he also used all that he observed and learned to make his case later on.

Above is a political cartoon portraying racism to show how black people were used for even the most menial and demeaning tasks, as if instead of being human beings they were objects. You might not notice but at the bottom it states "Dark Artillery; or How to Make the Contrabands Useful." which is even more demeaning than the dumb smiles they are given to show they aren't even smart enough to know or be aware they are facing a dangerous situation because blacks weren't considered knowledgeable or civilized. The Blacks are also portrayed with wide girth to make them look more animalistic and I believe it may be a way to backhandingly refer to them as monkeys.

To close the question What does it mean to be American I interviewed a guidance counselor for Isaac Bear Early college by the name of Colleen Pate.

Colleen Pate Guidance Counselor Interview

Key

Mrs. Micallef = M

Mrs. Colleen Pate= C

M-Mrs. Pate What does it mean to be an American to you?

C-Initially you have a lot of freedoms that you don’t have in other countries. I’ve traveled to (?) countries to date and it really makes you appreciate the democracy and independence we have in this country particularly as a female.

M- Good, thank you, question 2. What does it mean to you when you hear the context ‘American Dream’ what is the ‘American Dream’, or what is your ‘American dream’?

C-Well, I’ve had the American Dream uhm, first of all I was given an education, I earned an education. All five of my brothers and sisters were afforded the opportunity to get a college degree, although we had to choose colleges in Michigan because I lived in Michigan at the time. And my parents paid so all of us could attend Michigan schools and pay in-state intuition and then from there I actually went on and taught at the university level. And had the opportunity to do that; to take students to Europe on a regular basis each spring and then from that I moved to North Carolina in 1993, and opened up a commercial marketing company. And was able to make a six-figure income for many of those years which afforded me the American of being able to move and live wherever I wanted to, which is, I live on the Intercostal waterway. I was able to do that because of the earning I made from being a business entrepreneur. Then when 9/11 happened I re-examined my career direction and realized that I one of the things I enjoy most is working with young people and students. And so, I closed my end of the business we moved to the beach and I became a career counselor.

My Antonia

Poetry Analysis- Comparison between the poem "Let America be America Again" to the mimcry I wrote:

Original Poem:

Let America be America again.
Let it be the dream it used to be.
Let it be the pioneer on the plain
Seeking a home where he himself is free.

(America never was America to me.)

Let America be the dream the dreamers dreamed—
Let it be that great strong land of love
Where never kings connive nor tyrants scheme
That any man be crushed by one above.

(It never was America to me.)

O, let my land be a land where Liberty
Is crowned with no false patriotic wreath,
But opportunity is real, and life is free,
Equality is in the air we breathe.

(There's never been equality for me,
Nor freedom in this "homeland of the free.")

Say, who are you that mumbles in the dark? 
And who are you that draws your veil across the stars?

I am the poor white, fooled and pushed apart,
I am the Negro bearing slavery's scars.
I am the red man driven from the land,
I am the immigrant clutching the hope I seek—
And finding only the same old stupid plan
Of dog eat dog, of mighty crush the weak.

I am the young man, full of strength and hope,
Tangled in that ancient endless chain
Of profit, power, gain, of grab the land!
Of grab the gold! Of grab the ways of satisfying need!
Of work the men! Of take the pay!
Of owning everything for one's own greed!

I am the farmer, bondsman to the soil.
I am the worker sold to the machine.
I am the Negro, servant to you all.
I am the people, humble, hungry, mean—
Hungry yet today despite the dream.
Beaten yet today—O, Pioneers!
I am the man who never got ahead,
The poorest worker bartered through the years.

Yet I'm the one who dreamt our basic dream
In the Old World while still a serf of kings,
Who dreamt a dream so strong, so brave, so true,
That even yet its mighty daring sings
In every brick and stone, in every furrow turned
That's made America the land it has become.
O, I'm the man who sailed those early seas
In search of what I meant to be my home—
For I'm the one who left dark Ireland's shore,
And Poland's plain, and England's grassy lea,
And torn from Black Africa's strand I came
To build a "homeland of the free."

Mimicry Poem:

Let my new home be my home
Let it be the dream I wished for me and my family
Let it be driving spirit that brought us as one
Seeking a home where we could be free

(Even though they won’t let this be home for me.) 

Let it be the dream us foreigners dreamed-
Let it be the land we prosper upon and grow with love 
Where we can become kings on each block and be supreme
Where in our mother lands we could not be above

(This may never be home to me.)

O, let this land so strange be the salvation
Where we are not sold lies of those filled with greed
But our chances are real and cost-free
And equal opportunity is not a feat

(Even though the English treat us poorly, and there’s never been equality or much freedom for me in the land of the ‘free’

Say, who admits they spit at me in the light of day

And erase stars falsely scribbled on my route

I am the Europeans, and Asians granted entrance and later pushed away

I am the Asians you are afraid of and lock out

I am the Germans in houses barely the size of which a child would give the time of day

I am an immigrant holding the hope I will find what freedom is about

And I only find the same system of which I fled and was flayed

Of only the wealthy stand strong while the weak are stout

I am the young adults, full of naivety and desire

Twisted in the ancient cycle of our people

Of wealth, control, greed, and stolen land!

Of have the most! Of top of the block and stand on the tallest steeple!

Of work us crippled! Of sell us dreams and never lift a helping hand!

Of taking everything you promised as one such as a weasel!

I am the laundryman, proud but put down

I am the suit-maker forced to kneel at your command

I am the shoe-shiner at the corner servant to your crown

I am the people, silent in our pain

Hungry and poorer than when we were home

Spit and beaten upon- Us, great Pioneers!

I am the man who never got his dues

The poorest worker battered and bruised

Yet I still dream this will one day be my home

A stranger to this land and although not as ‘connected’

I dream a dream so brilliant, so beautiful, so together as one

That even the hope I carry low shines a bit, reflecting

In every little child’s smile, in every immigrants remembrance of where they are from

This is what makes America a bit more like the false heaven I’ve gotten

O, I am the man who sailed those rough waters

In search of what was meant to be home

For yes I left Ireland’s dark shores

And Polain’s plain, and Germany’s grassy lea

Ripped from Africa I was dragged

To build this false paradise of the free

Both the speaker of Langston Hughes’ “Let America be America Again” and my mimicry was an outraged immigrant, speaking out on the false doctrine of the American Dream and how the Americans should work to make the American Dream a reality. Both poems focused heavily on the poor treatment of the immigrants and the hopes they held although things hadn’t gone as was promised or expected. In Langston’s poem there was numerous repetitions of phrases such as ‘I am…’ which in context expressed that the speaker related to all immigrants personally, another example being the word ‘millions’ to convey all of the immigrants were a conglomerate. By using this diction he brought them together despite ethnicity. Using rhyme and near rhyme he allows the speech to flow and brings emphasis to each line, which in my mimicry poem I tried to emulate, in order to capture the emotion and determination he had to get his message across and emotionally affect a crowd. Langston’s message being that Americans should allow immigrants the chance to expand and become better and be successful instead of ensuring that the immigrants would fail.
I believe my poem was similar to Mrs. Shimerda in My Antonia because she never truly made it despite how hard she tried.  But she stayed hopeful and adamant about getting what she wanted and came for. Even after her husband dad, and Antonia failed her, she kept up the fight to achieve what she had left her homeland to do, make this her home and have herself doing well

.  

Paragraph	Conclusion
Introduction 1 Our age is retrospective. It builds the sepulchres Note of the fathers. It writes biographies, histories, and criticism. The foregoing generations beheld God and nature face to face; we, through their eyes Note. Why should not we also enjoy an original relation to the universe? Note Why should not we have a poetry and philosophy of insight and not of tradition, and a religion by revelation to us, and not the history of theirs? Embosomed for a season in nature, whose floods of life stream around and through us, and invite us by the powers they supply, to action proportioned to nature, why should we grope among the dry bones of the past, or put the living generation into masquerade out of its faded wardrobe? The sun shines to-day also. There is more wool and flax in the fields. There are new lands, new men, new thoughts. Let us demand our own works and laws and worship.	v  Nature is inviting us to break traditions
2 Undoubtedly we have no questions to ask which are unanswerable Note. We must trust the perfection of the creation so far, as to believe that whatever curiosity the order of things has awakened in our minds, the order of things can satisfy. Every man's condition is a solution in hieroglyphic Note to those inquiries he would put. He acts it as life, before he apprehends it as truth. In like manner, nature is already, in its forms and tendencies, describing its own design. Let us interrogate the great apparition, Note that shines so peacefully around us. Let us inquire, to what end is nature?	v  Nature will answer all unanswered questions §  Man interprets his own truth by communing with nature
3 All science has one aim, namely, to find a theory of nature. We have theories of races and of functions, but scarcely yet a remote approach to an idea of creation. We are now so far from the road to truth, that religious teachers dispute and hate each other, and speculative men are esteemed unsound and frivolous. But to a sound judgment, the most abstract truth is the most practical. Whenever a true theory appears, it will be its own evidence. Its test is, that it will explain all phenomena. Note Now many are thought not only unexplained but inexplicable; as language, sleep, madness, dreams, beasts, sex.	v  Man needs to break down Nature so it is not abstract §  Man’s theory of Nature are not satisfactory, it is too abstract v  Man needs Nature for some act of closure, for peace
4 Philosophically considered, the universe is composed of Nature and the Soul. Strictly speaking, therefore, all that is separate from us, all which Philosophy distinguishes as the NOT ME, Note that is, both nature and art, all other men and my own body, must be ranked under this name, NATURE. In enumerating the values of nature and casting up their sum, I shall use the word in both senses; -- in its common and in its philosophical import. In inquiries so general as our present one, the inaccuracy is not material; no confusion of thought will occur. Nature, in the common sense, refers to essences unchanged by man; space, the air, the river, the leaf. Art is applied to the mixture of his will with the same things, as in a house, a canal, a statue, a picture. Note But his operations taken together are so insignificant Note, a little chipping, baking, patching, and washing, that in an impression so grand as that of the world on the human mind, they do not vary the result.	v  Nature refers to essences to things unchanged by man §  Time §  Space v  Some things in Nature cannot be touched, capture, or replicated by man (listed above)
Ch. 1 1 To go into solitude, a man needs to retire as much from his chamber as from society. I am not solitary whilst I read and write, though nobody is with me. Note But if a man would be alone, let him look at the stars. The rays that come from those heavenly worlds, will separate between him and what he touches. One might think the atmosphere was made transparent with this design, to give man, in the heavenly bodies, the perpetual presence of the sublime. Note Seen in the streets of cities, how great they are! If the stars should appear one night in a thousand years, how would men believe and adore; Note and preserve for many generations the remembrance of the city of God which had been shown! But every night come out these envoys of beauty, and light the universe with their admonishing smile. Note	v  Man needs to go to Nature when he needs to be alone §  Away from society §  Away from materialistic value
2 The stars awaken a certain reverence, because though always present, they are inaccessible; but all natural objects make a kindred impression, when the mind is open to their influence. Note Nature never wears a mean appearance. Note Neither does the wisest man extort her secret, and lose his curiosity Note by finding out all her perfection. Nature never became a toy to a wise spirit. The flowers, the animals, the mountains, reflected the wisdom of his best hour, Note as much as they had delighted the simplicity of his childhood.	v  Everything as long as it’s special to the beholder can be admirable, inspirational, and uplifting v  Nature is indifferent v  Man cannot outsmart Nature, not even ‘Science’ which is ‘conceited’ and ‘egotistical’ v  Science wants to control Nature, but it only changes things for the worst or causes man to lose their wonder or excitement
3 When we speak of nature in this manner, we have a distinct but most poetical sense in the mind. We mean the integrity of impression made by manifold natural objects. It is this which distinguishes the stick of timber of the wood-cutter, from the tree of the poet. The charming landscape which I saw this morning, is indubitably made up of some twenty or thirty farms. Miller owns this field, Locke that, and Manning the woodland beyond. But none of them owns the landscape. There is a property in the horizon which no man has but he whose eye can integrate all the parts, that is, the poet. Note This is the best part of these men's farms, yet to this their warranty-deeds give no title.	v  No man can really own land or nature
4 To speak truly, few adult persons can see nature. Most is persons do not see the sun. At least they have a very superficial seeing. The sun illuminates only the eye of the man, but shines into the eye and the heart of the child. The lover of nature is he whose inward and outward senses are still truly adjusted to each other; who has retained the spirit of infancy even into the era of manhood. His intercourse with heaven and earth, becomes part of his daily food. In the presence of nature, a wild delight runs through the man, in spite of real sorrows. Nature says, -- he is my creature, and maugre Definition all his impertinent griefs, he shall be glad with me. Not the sun or the summer alone, but every hour and season yields its tribute of delight; for every hour and change corresponds to and authorizes a different state of the mind, from breathless noon to grimmest midnight. Nature is a setting that fits equally well a comic or a mourning piece. In good health, the air is a cordial of incredible virtue. Crossing a bare common, in snow puddles, at twilight, under a clouded sky, without having in my thoughts any occurrence of special good fortune, I have enjoyed a perfect exhilaration.I am glad to the brink of fear. In the woods too, a man casts off his years, as the snake his slough. And at what period soever of life, is always a child. In the woods, is perpetual youth. Within these plantations of God, a decorum and sanctity reign, a perennial festival is dressed, and the guest sees not how he should tire of them in a thousand years. In the woods, we return to reason and faith. There I feel that nothing can befall me in life, -- no disgrace, no calamity, (leaving me my eyes,) which nature cannot repair. Standing on the bare ground, -- my head bathed by the blithe air, and uplifted into infinite space, -- all mean egotism vanishes. I become a transparent eye-ball; I am nothing; I see all; the currents of the Universal Being circulate through me; I am part or particle of God. Note The name of the nearest friend sounds then foreign and accidental: to be brothers, to be acquaintances, -- master or servant, is then a trifle and a disturbance. I am the lover of uncontained and immortal beauty.In the wilderness, I find something more dear and connate than in streets or villages. In the tranquil landscape, and especially in the distant line of the horizon, man beholds somewhat as beautiful as his own nature.	v  Only a man who still has imagination and hasn’t detached from nature can still truly see nature like a child with no ties to any responsibilities.
5 The greatest delight which the fields and woods minister, is the suggestion of an occult relation between man and the vegetable. I am not alone and unacknowledged. They nod to me, and I to them. The waving of the boughs in the storm, new to me and old. It takes me by surprise, and yet is not unknown. Its effect is like that of a higher thought or a better emotion coming over me, when I deemed I was thinking justly or doing right.	v  Referring to those who worship the land?
6 Yet it is certain that the power to produce this delight, does not reside in nature, but in man, or in a harmony of both. It is necessary to use these pleasures with great temperance. For, nature is not always tricked in holiday attire, but the same scene which yesterday breathed perfume and glittered as for the frolic of the nymphs, is overspread with melancholy today. Nature always wears the colors of the spirit. To a man laboring under calamity, the heat of his own fire hath sadness in it. Then, there is a kind of contempt of the landscape felt by him who has just lost by death a dear friend. The sky is less grand as it shuts down over less worth in the population.	v  Enjoying nature is up to the individual and how they are connected with nature v  Every individual will see Nature differently depending on their mood v  Nature’s aesthetic value depends on how everyone percepts it

In the essay ‘Self Reliance’ Ralph Waldo Emerson reflects on how we all have the potential to become something better and transcend above what we are. Emerson believed that we all must become our own unique individual and not conform to that of the likes of the superficial and materialistic people of society. By conforming to the ways of society that destroys one’s personal separation from being a part of the crowd.