Emerson spoke out against materialism, the belief that material or physical things—not spiritual—are the most important. He also stood up against formal religion, and slavery (“I will not obey it, by God.”) Emerson, however, was not merely against certain things; he both preached and modeled a positive attitude. He became America’s leading transcendentalist (a person who believes that reality
Nature by Ralph Waldo Emerson (classic book)
