1a. According to Emerson, what does each person come to realize at a certain point in his or her education?
2a. What is the virtue that society asks of each person? What should people strive for instead?
3a. Emerson says that it is easy to live your life doing what other people think is appropriate and it is also easy to act on your own beliefs when you are alone. What type of behavior does he say is difficult but essential for greatness?
4a. Consider some of the people Emerson says were misunderstood in their time. What qualities distinguish them from other people?
5a. Do you agree with Emerson that is it better to rely on yourself rather than upon others for your values and your principles? What are some of the benefits of being self-reliant?
1b. Why does Emerson say that envy is ignorance and imitation is suicide? What alternative does Emerson recommend?
2b. Why does Emerson advocate nonconformity? What does he mean by nonconformity?
3b. What does Emerson mean by the phrase "the independence of solitude"? Why is it something for which to strive?
4b. Why might great people sometimes be inconsistent? Summarize Emerson's view of the importance of consistency.
5b. In your opinion, if society values conformity over individualism, why do nonconformists seem to have the greatest impact on society? Why can nonconformists change society so radically, as Caesar, Jesus, and Martin Luther did? What contemporary nonconformists can you think of that have had a great impact on our culture?
Essay and Theme. Review the discussion of essay and theme in Literary Tools on page 277. Identify at least one theme that runs through this essay.
Aphorism. Review the definition of aphorism in the Handbook of Literary Terms. Select two quotations from Emerson that could be considered to be aphorisms and that you believe have the potential of becoming proverbs. Explain why you chose them and why you think they will speak to many generations.
1. Read the Language Arts Survey 5.43, "Paraphrasing, Summarizing, and Quoting." Then choose two of the passages from "Self-Reliance" and rewrite them as paraphrases.
2. Emerson often gave lectures to groups to supplement his income. Create a poster advertising one of his lectures. Include the topics he will speak about. Give the potential audience good reasons for paying to see and hear him.
3. Imagine that Emerson were the writer of an advice column. Compose an appropriate question to pose to Emerson and then write an answer in the style of Emerson.
Correcting Run-Ons. If a sentence below is a run-on, rewrite it correctly.
1. Emerson trained to be a minister for years when he began his ministry he found that it had lost its meaning.
2. After visiting Europe, Emerson's spirits were revived, and he was inspired to write his first book.
3. Emerson lectured on many topics he always included a discussion of the moral principles that underlay his thinking.
4. Believing that slavery was an abomination, Emerson delivered lectures against it even when he was emotionally involved with his subject he kept his dignity.
5. Emerson's optimism is obvious in most of his works he believed that people have within themselves everything they need to know about the meaning of their own existence.
Biography. Write a brief biography about one of the people that Emerson mentions in his essay.
Biography:
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