Ralph Waldo Emerson

Ralph Waldo Emerson was an American poet, essayist, and philosopher who led the Transcendentalist movement of the mid-19th century. His poetry is known for its meditation on nature, individuality, and the human spirit. Biography ↓More ↓

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Ralph Waldo Emerson

Mithridates

I cannot spare water or wine, Tobacco-leaf, or poppy, or rose; From the earth-poles to the Line, All between that works or grows, Every thing is kin of mine. Give me agates for my meat, Give me cantharids to eat, From air and ocean bring me foods, From all zones and altitudes. From all natures, sharp and slimy, Salt and basalt, wild and tame, Tree, and lichen, ape, sea-lion, Bird and reptile be my game. Ivy for my fillet band, Blinding dogwood in my hand, Hemlock for my sherbet cull me,

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Loss And Gain

Virtue runs before the muse And defies her skill, She is rapt, and doth refuse To wait a painter's will. Star-adoring, occupied, Virtue cannot bend her, Just to please a poet's pride, To parade her splendor. The bard must be with good intent No more his, but hers, Throw away his pen and paint, Kneel with worshippers. Then, perchance, a sunny ray From the heaven of fire, His lost tools may over-pay, And better his desire.

To Eva

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To Eva

O Fair and stately maid, whose eye Was kindled in the upper sky At the same torch that lighted mine; For so I must interpret still Thy sweet dominion o'er my will, A sympathy divine.

Ah! let me blameless gaze upon Features that seem in heart my own, Nor fear those watchful sentinels Which charm the more their glance forbids, Chaste glowing underneath their lids With fire that draws while it repels.

Thine eyes still shined for me, though far I lonely roved the land or sea, As I behold yon evening star, Which yet beholds not me.

This morn I climbed the misty hill, And roamed the pastures through; How danced thy form before my path, Amidst the deep-eyed dew!

When the red bird spread his sable wing, And showed his side of flame, When the rose-bud ripened to the rose, In both I read thy name.

Biography

Ralph Waldo Emerson was an American poet, essayist, and philosopher, born in 1803 and active in the mid-19th century. His poetry often explores themes of nature, self-reliance, and the divine presence in the natural world, using clear, evocative imagery. Emerson's style is characterized by a philosophical and meditative tone, blending personal reflection with universal ideas. He was a central figure in the Transcendentalist movement, which emphasized individual intuition and the inherent goodness of nature. His works, including the essay 'Nature' and the poems 'Concord Hymn' and 'Brahma,' have had a lasting impact on American literature. He also delivered influential lectures that shaped American thought.

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