Ralph Waldo Emerson

Concord, Mass., Apr. 27, 2009. Parents at the Walden Intermediate School PTA meeting in the school’s audio-visual facility (a.k.a., library) last night protested the teaching of Concord icon Ralph Waldo Emerson’s seminal essay “Self-Reliance” . Ursula Heep , coordinator of Unconquered Concord said, “We don’t want our children to fall prey to this false prophet of elitism. When Emerson wrote, ‘Society everywhere is in conspiracy against the manhood of every one of its members,’ he was both sexist and dismissive of the uniformity needed to make society cohere.” Ms. Heep continued, “Self-reliance and nonconformity might have worked during Emerson’s time, but today Americans need ... Read Full Story

for the hint of where to go. "Think of all the beauty still left around you and be happy." Anne Frank (We live in the center of this photograph, well not literally but you know what I mean) Short Eared Owls There were 50 - 60 of these owls all bunched along a 200 yard stretch of road. (There are six in this image) "We make a living by what we get; We make a life by what we give." Winston Churchill "Thy fate is the common fate of all; Into each life some rain must fall." Henry Wadsworth Longfellow "Adopt the pace of ... Read Full Story

If you did not write a term paper on Nathaniel Hawthorne’s 1850 novel The Scarlet Letter , it is possible you did not go to high school in the United States. Having to write a comparison paper on The Scarlet Letter and Arthur Miller's The Crucible is almost as ubiquitous as having to memorize the prologue to The Canterbury Tales , or at least it was at one time. Later on, if you went to an American college or university and took a literature course, you probably were hit with “Rappaccini’s Daughter,” “The Birthmark,” or “Young Goodman Brown,” the three most widely anthologized of ... Read Full Story

Ralph Waldo Emerson (May 25, 1803 – April 27, 1882) was an American essayist, philosopher, poet, and leader of the transcendentalist movement in the early 19th century. He didn’t have a blog or any idea what one might be, but he is able to tell us why blogging is valuable . The good of publishing one’s thoughts is that of hooking to you like-minded men, and of giving to men whom you value… one hour of stimulated thought. — From The Heart of Emerson’s Journals, ed. Bliss Perry, p. 94. Entry of 20 June 1835 (Emerson was 32 years old). Read Full Story

One of the things I’ve been a bit surprised by along the way of my military history studies is my growing interest in all aspects of the times I’m studying. During my first course on the American Civil War, it became obvious that the artists of the time played an important role. I was very pleased that PBS aired a profile of Walt Whitman tonight on The American Experience . Good stuff. To that end, I’ve added the following three books to my library this week. You’ll find them on my virtual bookshelves here . Whitman: Poetry and Prose (Library of America College Editions) ... Read Full Story