Thoreau and other Romantics believed the common man could be a hero. Do you agree or disagree with that? Why/Why not? Explain.
Discussed Transcendentalism- (5 min.)
"Transcendentalism was committed to development of the self and had little regard for dogma or authority.
Ralph Waldo Emerson took up the Transcendentalist banner after studying at Harvard to be a Unitarian minister. He left what he called the “cold and cheerless” Unitarian pulpit to travel in Europe and talk to Romantic writers and philosophers, including Wordsworth, Coleridge, and Thomas Carlyle. Returning to America, he lived in Concord, Massachusetts, near Boston, where he composed poetry and wrote essays. He supported himself through annual lecture tours and was a very popular speaker.
In 1837 at Harvard, Emerson delivered his influential “American Scholar” lecture that exhorted Americans in the arts to stop turning to Europe for inspiration and instruction and begin developing an American literary and artistic tradition. Emerson preached the philosophy of the Oversoul and the organic, ever-changing nature of the universe, stressing self-reliance, individualism, optimism, and freedom. Though not inclined toward political activism, by the eve of the Civil War, Emerson became an ardent abolitionist.
Another Transcendentalist, Henry David Thoreau, wrote essays that have had a profound effect on modern thought. His philosophy of individualism and conscious nonconformism is expressed in his book Walden: Or Life in the Woods (1854) where he describes living a full emotional and intellectual life for two years while residing in a tiny cabin he made himself and existing in every other way at a barely subsistence level. His other work of note is the essay On the Duty of Civil Disobedience. Thoreau was against Texas joining the Union because it would be a slave state. He felt that the United States had involved itself in the Mexican War on behalf of Texas and, therefore, he refused to pay a tax that he felt would support the war effort. For this he was briefly jailed. Thoreau’s tactic of passive resistance was later emulated by Mahatma Gandhi in India in his resistance to British rule and by Martin Luther King, Jr. in his non-violent approach to gaining civil rights."
Video Notes- Transcendentalism & Utopian Societies
(Cornell Notes)
1. Brook Farm (stop at 3:00) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BAW6SK_4xUw&app=desktop
2. Oneida Community (stop at 3:00)- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DgPRA3De6EY&app=desktop
3. Shakers- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_amDJ6QkAw&app=desktop
(Shared background first- attached below)
4. Amish (stop at 7:00)- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SIlrXMvG9M0&app=desktop
Modern Connection- Hunger Games
- Partner Activity (choose your fellow tribute)
- One tribute from each partner group came up and drew a district
- Based on the district you drew, you must create your own Utopian district and base it around your district's assigned resource. For example, if you drew District 9 (grain) your society was based around that, but you set up the rules. It's your Utopia. Groups were given 10 minutes to create their list.
- Share- Each group shared a synopsis of their Utopia
Districts
District 1 = luxury items
District 2 = masonry
District 3 = electronics/technology
District 4 = fishing
District 5 = power
District 6 = transportation
District 7 = Lumber
District 8 = textiles
District 9 = grain
District 10 = livestock
District 11 = agriculture
District 12 = coal mining
District 13 = graphite mining and nuclear weaponry.
"Brute Neighbors" (from Walden- pg. 258-261)
Extra Credit Opportunity- Create a one page sporting commentary or play by play of either the ant fight or the loons. Be prepared to share it next class period. (20 pts.)
REMINDER: Don't forget to bring food donations for the English Department's Hunger Wars Food Drive that benefits Columbia Families! We are District 5 so "We have the Power!" Who knows He-man? If you read this and mention it in class, you will receive an easy 5 pts. extra credit!
Additional Resource for Understanding Transcendentalism- http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=yNMueK8C8uw
Transcendentalism video definition
4_utopian_communities_that_bombed_miserably.doc |