An Uneasy Solitude : Individual and Society in the Work of Ralph Waldo Emerson

This subtle intellectual biography juxtaposes Ralph Waldo Emerson's revolutionary spiritual thinking with his elitist ideas of race and property--a contrast so sharp as to make his personality seem almost incoherent." Writing in (he great modern tradition of French anglicisles, Maurice Gonnaud compares Emerson's taste for solitude and the lyric ardor it awakened in him to his efforts to confront the social pressures of his times. Originally published in 1987. The **Princeton Legacy Library** uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905. Contents Foreword Translator's Preface Author's Preface to the French Edition Abbreviations PART I. The Uncertainties of a Vocation 1. The Family Milieu 2. Harvard: An Apprenticeship in Solitude 3. The Schoolteacher Feels His Way 4. The Ministry, or, An Attempt at the Safe Middle Way PART II. The Discovery and Glorification of the Self 5. The Road to Concord 6. Prophecies and Epiphany 7. Organizing Victory 8. From Affirmation to Challenge PART III. From Ideal Democracy to Natural Aristocracy 9. Malaise 10. Exploring the Problems 11. Equilibrium Regained PART IV. Individual and Citizen 12. The Thorn in the Flesh 13. A Surrogate Optimism 14. The Last Struggle Bibliography of Emerson's Writings Index