The World of the Transcendentalists and the Rise of Modern Individualism

The World of the Transcendentalists and the Rise of Modern Individualism

The town of Concord, Massachusetts has been famous twice in history. First as the location of the "shot heard round the world" which kickstarted the American Revolution in the 18th century, and second, as the home of several famous writers and thinkers, including Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau, in the 19th.

My guest today, professor of history Robert A. Gross, has written landmark books on both of these periods in Concord's history. The first, called The Minutemen and Their World, was published in 1976. Now, nearly 50 years later, he's published a new volume called The Transcendentalists and Their World.

In both books, Bob delves into the details of everyday life in Concord in order to illuminate broader trends and forces in American culture. In the case of his second book, he does so to explore how the communal, hierarchical nature of life in America during the Revolutionary period shifted to a more autonomous and bottom-up ethos during the time of transcendentalism — a movement which prized individuality over conformity and intuition over logic, believed divinity existed in each person and throughout nature, and celebrated the authority of the individual over the authority of institutions.

In today's episode, Bob and I discuss how changing forces in commerce and religion, as well as a fervent, emerging interest in self-improvement, led to this shift, and how thinkers like Emerson and Thoreau set a new course for what it means to live a life of integrity. We end our conversation with what the world of the transcendentalists has to tell us in our own time period, which, like theirs, is marked by the widespread rejection of top-down gatekeepers.

Resources Related to the PodcastConnect With Bob Gross

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Jaksot(1159)

The Winter Mindset: How Norwegians Love the Winter (And You Can Too)

The Winter Mindset: How Norwegians Love the Winter (And You Can Too)

When people think about winter, they often focus on the negatives: the cold, the dark, and the seasonal depression the season can bring. But my guest today questions whether winter really has to be so...

11 Joulu 20241h 1min

Undoing Urgency — How to Stop Drowning in Tasks and Start Living With Purpose

Undoing Urgency — How to Stop Drowning in Tasks and Start Living With Purpose

Feeling overwhelmed by an endless to-do list? Like you're constantly putting out fires but never getting ahead? You're not alone. Many people today feel like they're drowning in urgency — filling ever...

9 Joulu 202456min

What Sports Betting Is Really Doing to Players, Games, and Fans

What Sports Betting Is Really Doing to Players, Games, and Fans

Sports gambling has exploded in America. You can't watch a game today without being bombarded by ads from betting companies, often co-branded with the major sports leagues themselves. It's a dramatic ...

4 Joulu 202444min

Achieve Peak Performance by Learning to Shift the Gears of Your Mind

Achieve Peak Performance by Learning to Shift the Gears of Your Mind

The Industrial Revolution changed the nature of work, so that many people labored in factories, continuously performing the same task, at the same pace, for the duration of their shift.Two centuries o...

2 Joulu 202450min

Flying, Hosting, Regifting, and More — All Your Holiday Etiquette Questions Answered

Flying, Hosting, Regifting, and More — All Your Holiday Etiquette Questions Answered

In an age where a lot of formalized decorum has vanished, the holidays are still a time with rules, traditions, and unspoken expectations. It's also a time of heightened social interactions and increa...

27 Marras 202453min

Rich Mind vs. Poor Mind — A Psychologist’s Guide to Building Wealth

Rich Mind vs. Poor Mind — A Psychologist’s Guide to Building Wealth

Many people think becoming wealthy is all about having the right job, inheritance, or just lucky breaks. And those things can certainly give you a leg up. But according to my guest, the biggest key to...

25 Marras 202440min

Tribal Runners, Weekend Warriors, and Our Changing Relationship to Endurance Sports

Tribal Runners, Weekend Warriors, and Our Changing Relationship to Endurance Sports

Endurance activities, like distance running, have existed since ancient times. But humans' relationship to those pursuits has changed, according to time and place. In the West, we've currently turned ...

20 Marras 202451min

What's Behind the Rise of Parent-Child Estrangement?

What's Behind the Rise of Parent-Child Estrangement?

These days, you hear more and more about parents and adult children being estranged from each other. Some individuals have even decided to go "no contact" with their parents; they don't want anything ...

18 Marras 202456min

Suosittua kategoriassa Koulutus

rss-murhan-anatomia
voi-hyvin-meditaatiot-2
psykopodiaa-podcast
adhd-podi
rss-liian-kuuma-peruna
rss-narsisti
rss-rahamania
rss-duodecim-lehti
rss-psykalab
rss-tietoinen-yhteys-podcast-2
rss-vapaudu-voimaasi
kesken
psykologia
rss-valo-minussa-2
rss-niinku-asia-on
rss-lasnaolon-hetkia-mindfulness-tutuksi
puhutaan-koiraa
filocast-filosofian-perusteet
rss-monarch-talk-with-alexandra-alexis
rss-luonnollinen-synnytys-podcast