There are many meaningful points made in Emerson's
"Self-Reliance," three stand out, and while presented here separately, they all are
interrelated—each depending upon the other.
The first is
"genius."
To
believe your own thought, to believe that what is true for you in your private heart is
true for all men—that is
genius.
Emerson states that
genius is not only knowing what is true for each of us, but also
knowing that the same truth holds fast for all
men. He praises the ability of one to have faith in himself. He notes that genius is
looking at what we believe and holding to that even if other's criticize us. Each of us
is unique:
Trust thyself: every heart vibrates to that iron
string. Accept the place the divine providence has found for you,
the society of your contemporaries, the connection of events. Great men have always done
so, and confided themselves childlike to the genius of their
age...
[*the divine
providence: God]
Emerson
notes...
...society, by its nature, coerces men to
conform.
And
so...
Whoso
would be a man, must be a
nonconformist.
Next, Emerson
speaks of foolishly conforming for others. As alluded to in the previous point, society
criticizes rather than praises those who are different; many people will do anything to
please society and remain "consistent" for fear of what society will say if an one
changes his mind.
For nonconformity the world whips you with its
displeasure...
Society wants
all of its parts to be in complete agreement. Emerson dismisses
this:
My life
is not an apology, but a life. It is for itself and not for a
spectacle.
In terms of
"foolish consistency," Emerson also writes:
A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little
minds, adored by little statesmen and philosophers and divines. With consistency a great
soul has simply nothing to
do.
Emerson believes that to
change one's mind is necessary if one finds reason to do so; to be constant
simply for what others will think is
nonsense:
...if you would be a man speak what you think
to-day in words as hard as cannon balls, and to-morrow speak what to-morrow thinks in
hard words again, though it contradict every thing you said
to-day.
Will a man then be
misunderstood? Great men of the past, he writes, have been misunderstood: Socrates,
Jesus, Luther, etc.
Finally, Emerson speaks also to
self-worth. He notes that it is not easy to be your own person, but that a truly great
person will turn his back on what society thinks and find his personal value in doing
what is right for him, regardless of the opinions of
others.
What I
must do is all that concerns me, not what the people think...It is the harder because
you will always find those who think they know what is your duty better than you know
it.
The author says it is
easier to conform, but...
...the great man is he who in the midst of the
crowd keeps with perfect sweetness the independence of
solitude.
There are other
"themes" in this piece, and all seem tied by the need to be unique and satisfied with
one's place in life—not to worry about what others believe, but to follow one's heart.
And in all, Emerson refers to man's connection to God. God places us in the position we
occupy in the world, with the ability to be our
best...
...but
God will not have his work made manifest by
cowards.
Emerson insists that
individual strength and belief in one's chosen path, will lead us to self-satisfaction,
as God would have it.
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