Thoreau And Emerson's Intuition

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“Emerson thought it, Thoreau did it” this old adage appears to speak loudly of what many thought about Emerson and the ideas and philosophies that spewed out of his mind. To many Emerson was a man of a lot of words but little action, and Thoreau talked the talk and walked the walk. Though that is the case the old adage does not reflect the impact Emerson had on the philosophy world and how Thoreau was able to accomplish so much because of Emerson. Emerson paved the way for people like Thoreau; he was his mentor and teacher. The old quote many reference with Emerson brings up another old saying when it comes to teachers, “those that know, do. Those that understand, teach.” Emerson comprehended clearly what he believed in so he tried to share his wisdom through his writings; he was a teacher. Thoreau knew all of this. He studied transcendentalism, and all of Emerson’s teachings, so he put them in action and expanded on Emerson’s ideas. Like all great movies involving a master and an apprentice; such as Star Wars, the student always steps ahead of the master. Emerson’s ideas towards individuality, intuition, creative …show more content…
Emerson’s intuition is to analyze everything, every idea, problem, and solution. That was his first reaction it was to put everything in its proper context and figure out a way to explain why something happens, or to write and come up with snazzy little sentences that say “the heart refuses to be imprisoned”. This quote brought to light by Professor Richardson in class helps explain Emerson intuition he always followed his heart and did what he felt would make him feel good. So Emerson not only thought of ideas but also his actions influenced others ideas and that’s what makes his intuition important when analyzing the old adage attached to Emerson and