Would you consider transcendentalism a religious movement or not? What evidence do you use for you reasoning?
Of course, transcendentalism was initially developed as a religion; in US history, however, it has come to be viewed as an intellectual movement. In fact, the movement of the early 19 th century created a platform for the United States to undergo substantial changes in virtually every aspect of human life. Among the founding fathers of transcendentalism, it would be reasonable to make mention of Ralph Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, and Margaret Fuller. Yes, transcendentalism represents an American intellectual movement aimed at transforming the society as a whole. In concrete terms, the movement sought to enlighten the masses on their potential to transcend rationality. Much emphasis was also placed on human’s strong connection to nature. Sure enough, the role of transcendentalism in terms of reconfiguring the public is hard to exaggerate.
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In brief, the movement pushed the masses to retreat from the tendency towards blind conformity. On the whole, I would not consider transcendentalism a religious movement; this is despite the fact that it was intended to show the pattern for spiritual life.
Were the abolitionists racist?
After a thorough consideration, it can be said with certainty that white abolitionists saw black people as inferior to them; this in turn gives reasonable grounds for submitting that white abolitionists were definitely racist. Notably, both white and black abolitionists rallied together to put an end to the era of slavery. At the same time, the former had a totally different idea on how to launch the process; as many historians reiterate, racial ideas were an integral part of the white abolitionist movement. Indeed, white abolitionists were driven by a strong desire to belittle black freedom fighters so that they could dominate the movement. Unlike black abolitionists, their white counterparts did not take racial equality seriously; and therefore it is undeniable that they prejudiced against the black population.
