A philosophy that reality is discovered by studying the processes of thought A philosophy that emphasizes the intuitive and spiritual (mind) above the empirical (provable).
Developed a body of ideas that was part ◦ Religion ◦ Philosophy ◦ Literary movement They rebelled against society, not just by becoming involved with radical political movements like the Abolitionists, but by questioning the very nature of reality They believed that reality is more than just what we can see – the “true,” spiritual reality is beyond the reach of science or the senses
What they thought Inspiration for our generation? Think of the movie “THE MATRIX” to understand this. In the same way that Neo is able to “wake up” and see that his whole world is just an illusion covering up the true reality, the Transcendentalists believed that there was a TRUE reality beyond what we could SEE. But they considered this reality to be SPIRITUAL.
It’s also similar to the Hindu belief that the true reality - the essence of God, “Brahman” - is present in, and beyond, all things. In other words, there is “God in us,” as well as nature and all life. Oversoul Each individual must use “intuition” to discover the true knowledge and reality of our world, which they called the “ Oversoul.”
The Oversoul is the creative force in nature by which each thing becomes what it is. Everything in nature, driven by the same Oversoul, strives to realize its inner potential. Since all life, including nature, shares one soul with God, every detail of nature, and each individual person, no matter what race or class, is sacred to Transcendentalists. Like Puritans, transcendentalists affirmed the individual’s ability to experience God, but unlike Puritans, they thought this ability was given to everyone. Their beliefs were confirmed by evidence of a similar spirit in nature.
Live in communes (like hippies) Fight injustice Enjoy nature Write and speak to spread their views