Emerson and Self-Reliance

Ralph Waldo Emerson was a man who lived an interesting life but wrote even more interesting texts. In “Self-Reliance”, Emerson discusses how we must trust ourselves and be independent in order to make a change. If everyone despises conformity than we must not all conform to society, except most of us do.

Society shapes for is normal and good and we, the people, abide by it even though we may not agree, so why don’t we break the rules society has set? Emerson makes many great points in this text to empower his stand. When talking about conformity, Emerson says, “Man is timid and apologetic. He is no longer upright. He dares not say ‘I think’ ‘I am’ but quotes some saint or sage.”(pg. 557). Emerson is referring to how many people refer to religious texts for their information and base their ideas off of others instead of voicing their own opinion.

Emerson makes a broad statement saying that everyone wants to improve society without realizing they have to improve themselves first; “All men plume themselves on the improvement of society, and no man improves”(pg. 564). In the text, he is allowing us the idea that while everyone wants to make their society better, no one starts making their own individual person better. Everyone can be a reflection of society and society is a reflection of everyone in it and so because society is not changing, no man will change, but because no man is changing, society will in turn not change.

Emerson has strong ideas in this text that make people who read it wonder if they are really doing what they are meant to do or if they are conforming to society's ideal image of them. If they do not like society then why are they still conforming to it instead of trying to break away? Some may say the answer to this is the fear of judgement but others may not have an answer. People should start improving themselves, as Emerson has said, and society would see a much better improvement that what is has.