Rating: 
Summary: Self Reliance: Can we really Rely on Waldo!
Review: Not his best book,I Thought Waldo Lost in New York is more authoritive. I mean who honestly belives that someone who is always lost can be trusted to help other people become self reliant, when he can't even rely on himself.
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Summary: An American Philosopher
Review: Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882) is one of America's pre-eminent philosophers. Born into a long line of ministers and preachers, Emerson went to Harvard at the tender age of 14, where he studied to fulfill his destiny and become a minister. Emerson eventually dropped out of this line of work, embarking on a career as a public speaker and serving as the intellectual center of a group called the Transcendentalist Club. This Dover edition contains some of Emerson's best-known essays, specifically "Self-Reliance," as well as his address to the Harvard Divinity School.Emerson's philosophy, although sometimes painfully explicated upon in his own writings, is best summed up by the word "individualism." To Emerson, it is the individual that should be the fulcrum point in all aspects of life. Emerson then took this philosophy and applied it to a myriad of subjects. In "History," the first essay in this collection, Emerson attempts to weave his belief in individual expression into the study of historical events. Emerson argues that a reliance on dates, places, and figures is not nearly as important as reaching within oneself to discover the whole of history. This is important because every man contributes to history, and every man can see himself in any history from any part of the world. Emerson also argues that history, as we presently know it and study it, ignores important fundamentals such as metaphysics and nature. What Emerson seems to attempt with this essay is to create a sort of "unified field theory" of history, a history that encompasses every aspect of the human experience, and one in which everyone takes part. "Self-Reliance," Emerson's masterwork, attempts to explain how man should retain his individualism in the face of society. It is society that stifles the individual, and the trick is to be true to yourself and your conscience. Law should not be, and is not, above the individual. Again, conscience should rule the day. Every man must follow his conscience even if doing so endangers his role in society. This tension between the individual and society Emerson enumerates continues to reverberate to this day. In his address to the Harvard Divinity School, a real charmer that got Emerson banned from the school for years, he addresses individualism in the context of religion. Emerson, himself a trained minister who eventually resigned his pulpit, urges those about to embark on a career in the clergy to reach inside themselves when preaching. Don't rely on the same old tired formulas everyone else relies on, Emerson says, but see what the holy word means to you and then express what you find to your flock in your own way. It's easy to imagine what people who believe that religion is about rote memorization and rituals eons old thought about this speech. They hated it, and hated Emerson for delivering it to the young people in the audience. Several other essays round out the collection, all of them utilizing Emerson's keen sense of the power of the individual. That Emerson is still in print today while some of his contemporaries are not is proof enough of the power and influence of his thought. Whether you agree with his arguments or not (and there is much here to disagree with), there is no denying that he has been enormously influential to American thinkers of his time and those who have come after him.
Rating: 
Summary: Okay, Whatever!
Review: The only reason I even give this silly book 1 star is because of Mr. Emerson's numerous attempts, although ill-spent, to try and humour his readers. Please, such drivel...and from a self-proclaimed genius?! All I can say is that Mr. Emerson obviously wouldn't have understood the intricacies of the computer industry if he were alive today. I have my A+ certification...I bet he never could have certified in anything (even something lame like linux)!
Rating:
Summary: Okay, Whatever!
Review: The only reason I even give this silly book 1 star is because of Mr. Emerson's numerous attempts, although ill-spent, to try and humour his readers. Please, such drivel...and from a self-proclaimed genius?! All I can say is that Mr. Emerson obviously wouldn't have understood the intricacies of the computer industry if he were alive today. I have my A+ certification...I bet he never could have certified in anything (even something lame like linux)!
Rating: 
Summary: A Throbing Master Piece
Review: This book tickled my every emotion, i laughed i cried, i had the best of time and i had the worst of times.Im tall and not a poss. I have no pants on
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Summary: Trash! Absolute trash!
Review: This book was a waste of my time. Not anywhere in his bumbling incoherence did Waldo come up with a single cognitive thought! The shame he has brought upon American society is very disturbing. I mean, his name is WALDO. You know? As in, where's Waldo? Obviously he's very lost. Stay away!
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Summary: Instructions for pro-human anarchism from the 1800's
Review: This essay, foremost amongst the Thoreau and Emersonian works I've read, has influenced my political views the most. It raises maxim questions about society at all times - not simply the Industrial Age.
Rating:
Summary: A Great Book
Review: This is a great book on independent thought and optimism (not to mention lots of cool lines to quote). If you want to be motivated to be yourself and increase your optimism, this is for you.
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Summary: Mighty thoughts that can shake your life!
Review: This is one of the greatest books I have ever read. I know that many people don't like to read essays of any kind, but all I can say is that Ralph Waldo Emerson is simply different! Nobody has the gift to write essays and analyze life like him. His words and ideas are so powerful and deep that we soon realize that they didn't come only from a brilliant mind, but also from a warm-hearted soul! That's exactly what this book is about: Its sentences break through your brain and penetrate right into your soul! Emerson's optimistic view on human beings and life can only reinforce our courage in mankind and, especially, in ourselves! What else can I say? His speech is direct, he defends all the good values, tell us to have confidence in ourselves and show us that passing through life with dignity is a matter of choice and courage, and that it simply doesn't change with time. It was like this a thousand years ago, it will probably follow the same rules a thousand years f! ! rom now. This is the book I grab to comfort my spirit when I'm having difficult times... :) It is a guide that make us believe that anything is possible when we really want it! " Self-Reliance ", one of the essays inside this book, is a masterpiece in its own and I believe it should be studied in every high school, instead some of the crap we are usually obliged to read! This book can shape your spirit and your mind. It is also possibly THE BEST self-help book you could ever own and, yet, a great literary work. I would rate this book as ageless and I'm sure the future generations will be still interested in it, in the same way we are in those ancient Greek and Roman texts. This is precious culture and food for your soul as a bargain! Do not waste more time. READ IT!!!
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