Although Emerson’s writing is very formal and philosophical, I found myself agreeing and diving deep into the ideas that he was presenting. I believe that the idea of the relationship between humans and nature is very delicate and it is something that is constantly talked about. This can be from how humans have destroyed the environment around them to how many elements of the natural world have healing properties. It is very much a give a take relationship and at least now, humans tend to take much more than they give.
What struck me the most about Emerson’s writing, was his take on beauty. To him, he feels that “there is no object so foul that intense light will not make beautiful” (186). This is a very bold statement, but one must not take it too literally. To Emerson, nature represents some kind of spiritual being. In a lot of spiritual beliefs, light represents a higher power of a God of some sort. Emerson is referring to the belief that the God in nature has the ability to touch all things and turn them into something beautiful. At the same time, the light shining down on a sunny day can truly transform a space into something magnificent.
I agreed with Emerson in his idea that beauty is not concrete. He explained how some people may think a country landscape is only beautiful in the summer because it is blossoming and green and warm. However, Emerson believes that it is also beautiful in the winter – it is beautiful in a different way. In the winter, the snow glitters on the ground and ice hangs from tree branches. This is something that I try to incorporate into my life. I try to look for the beauty in everything. This might not be easy. I will have to look more closely at things and notice the small details that are beautiful. This is a way of being an optimist.
Cate! I really enjoyed the point you made about “beauty being in everything.” It reminds me of a poem I looked at in Poetry and Poetics last semester called The Red Wheelbarrow by William Carlos Williams. It is one of the shortest and simplest poems I’ve ever read, but the mundane “red wheelbarrow” acts as a more profound representation for the belief that even the most ordinary of everyday objects are deserving of great appreciation. In Emerson’s case, he argues that even the most mundane environments are beautiful and deserving of appreciation, but I found the two works to be very similar (perhaps Williams was inspired by Emerson?!). I agree that we, as people, should look more closely at objects or scenes, no matter how ordinary they appear, because there exists great beauty in the minute details.