Top-Rated Free Essay
Preview

A Personal Analysis Emerson's Quote: Nothing is at Last Sacred But the Integrity of Your Own Mind

Good Essays
1074 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
A Personal Analysis Emerson's Quote: Nothing is at Last Sacred But the Integrity of Your Own Mind
In his Self-Reliance essay, Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote, Nothing is at last sacred but the integrity of your own mind. This quote shows that the only thing that keeps a man from reaching his potential is the strength of his mind. Emerson believes that to find integrity is the absolute goal of human existence. The dictionary gives this definition of integrity, Integrity: Something undivided; an integral whole. The condition of having no part or element taken away; soundness Self-integrity, in this sense, is being in possession of ones own undivided body, mind, and emotions. Emerson believed that the feeble minded were destined to suffer unless they could train their mind to become one. Human beings have minds that are separated from its companion, emotion, an abstract element. However the actual body is concrete and is used in terms of non-thinking or non-feeling of the human mind. To Emerson, finding the integrity of ones own mind can be a life long journey that can only be discovered through truthfully searching within one's self.

Emerson also could have meant to alter the meaning of sacredness, which is only in the integrity of ones own mind. Emerson believed that churches and other organizations were labeled as dead institutions and thus to deny the concept of sacredness is to condemn all organized religions. No religion can exist without some form of sacredness. Emerson designated that something sacred or holy is to deprive people of their right to experience each thing for what it is, to appreciate its full value, and not for what it is said to be. When nothing is at last sacred but the integrity of your own mind, all values, principles, and morals strip down to ones very inner core and then will have themselves to blame or praise. I believe this is the truth that Emerson was searching for when he was trying to find his own integrity.

On a personal level, I believe that although one may let others influence his ideas (human nature), it is ultimately his own doings that will manifest his destiny. There is a reason why mankind was given conscience. As humans, we are the only species that can make our own choices, establish what is right and wrong, and use reasoning to get ourselves out of situations. The choices that people make always have an outcome or consequence. If I decide not to study for an English test, it is certain that I will receive a low grade on it. On the other hand, if I CHOOSE to study for my English test, then I will probably get a grade I deserve. Although there are other influences such as distractions, to prevent me from studying, it is ultimately my own choice whether I study or not which leads to a good grade or a bad one. People should not let other people influence decision making. The choices that I make create my own future, if I let my decisions fall into the hand of someone else, then my future is not mine anymore.

However, if I did let my choices and decisions be determined by someone else, then I must be trapped in some kind of system. People would be tools of a large society and nobody would have a mind for themselves. To realize and accept that nothing is at last sacred but the integrity of your own mind, shows that although ones physical, concrete being is still in within the system, the mind and soul or spirit of one is free from the prison. This concept is exemplified in the book 1984 where the protagonist is under a system where even the mind can be controlled. Although it is in an extreme setting, theoretically, the world today is not much different than it is in the novel. Billions of people are trapped inside some kind of system: they wake up, go to work, return home, sleep, and start the cycle over again. This majority must play by these rules in order to put food on the table and support themselves and their family. Even I live in a similar system; I wake up, go to school, return home, sleep, and start the cycle again. However, if everyone was a tool in this grand scheme, then no one would have to worry about anything. But everyone has some kind of integrity. If my mind was created for the purpose of just eat, sleep, and work, then I would be no better off than a robot. To be able to realize that ones integrity is the only sacred thing, then he is free from the system. Anyone has the potential to free their mind and thus have a higher understanding of truth, however this journey, as Emerson believes, can take a lifetime and is only achieved by means of searching within ones self.

Although the journey to finding self integrity is long, I believe that some people falsify themselves in their life. In my opinion, this is especially true for people who go to church. I can resonate with Emerson to an extent that when people pray in church and talk to god and believe that god is listening to their prayers, they are in reality, talking to them. I have many friends who are Christian and many times have they asked me to come to church with them. I believe that the church is yet another system which people follow for their own reasons. However, the idea is still the same: pray to god, and he will listen to you; believe in Jesus and he will guide you closer to god. Although it is a system, this organization is a system to trap the mind. If one constantly prays to god and talks to him about his troubles hoping god will give him an answer, then the choice and decision making is ultimately decided by god. Emerson believed that everyone has a god within themselves. I believe that this god that is within everyone is essentially their own sacred integrity. I believe that when one talks to god, they are only fooling themselves and in reality are talking to their integrity and asking themselves how to get out of sticky situations. All in all, Emersons quote is another brilliant way of saying, believe in yourself.

Sources Used:Emerson's Self-Reliance essayandhttp://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20071220115322AA3jJr5

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    Emerson see’s the integrity of one’s own mind, which means, one’s own way of thinging, and being able to be themselves and not what others want.…

    • 374 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Emerson wrote this essay is to teach a lesson. He argues to the reader to trust themselves and to not conform to the standards of others. Emerson tells his audience, “Absolve you to yourself, and you shall have the suffrage of the world.” This means that you must first have approval and support of yourself, and then you will gain approval of the world. The purpose of this essay, pertaining to any audience, is to show that a person needs to find his own truth, and have confidence or “self-reliance” in themselves.…

    • 574 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Integrity is having a standard of morals and ethics, and living by them. It is a willingness and ability to do the right thing even when it is hard. The story To Kill a Mockingbird is filled with integrity. For example, many of the characters show different traits of integrity through doing what is right, and others show traits of integrity for doing what they believe in. Some of the characters portray no integrity at all.…

    • 1158 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Everyone’s values and beliefs are affected to different degrees by the same range of factors. Each of us will be influenced to a greater or lesser degree by these layers of influence. As each individual is different, the…

    • 638 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Coming up on the ASAA Track and Field championships, I developed achilles tendonitis which inevitably ruined my high school running career. I couldn’t believe that me of all people had gotten injured. I was very involved with injury prevention and performed strengthening exercises, stretches, made safe decisions, and had very a very healthy diet on a daily basis. Over the next eighteen months I visited over six different experts who claimed that they recognized my injury and knew how to treat it. After nearly three months without any noticeable improvement I began to conduct my own research and try to correct my problem myself. I developed a keen interest in the field of rehabilitation and the many mysteries that the body held. When the time…

    • 1629 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    It has also not made a contribution to our understanding in terms of its believed we are majorly influenced by those around us and are vulnerable to conforming into the social view. It’s thought that each individual is liable for creating their own thoughts, beliefs and feelings. Although an individual may perceive to follow the majority it may not be that the individual ideally would like to, however due to society they may feel pressured into following their social group, leading to them avoiding and ignoring personal values and beliefs of…

    • 972 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    This maxim by Ralph Waldo Emerson, states that nothing is more important than what your own mind…

    • 662 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    My belief is that an individual’s reaction to something can be the result of social experience or separate from social experience depending upon the particular circumstance. Furthermore, I feel each individual has a personality comprised of individual traits which, at times, are able to be influenced by cultural views.…

    • 285 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    "Nothing is at last sacred but the integrity of your own mind." - Ralph Waldo Emerson. To me, this means that the only thing that keeps someone from reaching their potential is the strength of their mind. Emerson believed the weak minded were destined to fail unless they could train their mind. In life, the only person that you truly need to make happy is yourself. If you lose sight of who you really are, then you have nothing to live for. No one will be able to respect you if you cannot respect yourself. I agree with this quote for a few reasons. I am able to have a high level of respect for others who show their honesty and that belive in what they say. I am also a very honest person with high self respect. This makes me feel like a stronger person overall.…

    • 727 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Ralph Waldo Emerson

    • 333 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Emerson sees the integrity of the individual mind to be the most sacred aspect of a person.…

    • 333 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Emerson Self Reliance

    • 376 Words
    • 2 Pages

    What Emerson sees as the most sacred aspect of a person is the integrity of our own mind, our own way of thinking, and being able to be yourself and not who others are or want.…

    • 376 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Paper on Ucmj

    • 959 Words
    • 4 Pages

    In this context, integrity is the inner sense of "wholeness" deriving from qualities such as honesty and consistency of character.…

    • 959 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    As he returned from Europe in 1833, Emerson had already begun to think about the book that would eventually be published under the title Nature. In writing Nature, Emerson drew upon material from his journals, sermons, and lectures. The lengthy essay was first published in Boston by James Munroe and Company in September of 1836. A new edition (also published by Munroe, with Emerson paying the printing costs, his usual arrangement with Munroe) appeared in December of 1849. This second edition was printed from the plates of the collection Nature; Addresses, and Lectures, published by Munroe in September 1849. (The second edition of this collection was published in Boston in 1856 by Phillips, Sampson, under the title Miscellanies; Embracing Nature, Addresses, and Lectures.) Nature was published in London in 1844 in Nature, An Essay. And Lectures on the Times, by H. G. Clarke and Co. A German edition was issued in 1868. It was included in 1876 in the first volume (Miscellanies) of the Little Classic Edition of Emerson's writings, in 1883 in the first volume (Nature, Addresses, and Lectures) of the Riverside Edition, in 1903 in the first volume (Nature, Addresses, and Lectures) of the Centenary Edition, and in 1971 in the first volume (Nature, Addresses, and Lectures) of the Collected Works published by the Belknap Press of Harvard University Press. Nature has been printed in numerous collections of Emerson's writings since its first publication, among them the 1940 Modern Library The Complete Essays and Other Writings of Ralph Waldo Emerson (edited by Brooks Atkinson), the 1965 Signet Classic Selected Writings of Ralph Waldo Emerson (edited by William H. Gilman), and the 1983 Library of America Essays & Lectures (selected and annotated by Joel Porte).…

    • 707 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Everyone in this world is influenced by someone or something. Your friends, parents, teachers, and even technology are only a few things that make you the person you are today. So when Rainsford stated that, "The world is made up of two classes: The hunters and the huntees. I agree with Rainsford; everyone is forced or influenced to do things. For example, bullies force you to be stronger, parents push you to be a better person and society pushes you to be the individual you are today.…

    • 509 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Integrity and courage

    • 1238 Words
    • 5 Pages

    I would propose for your consideration that a significant characteristic of integrity is consideration of others; have I been just too all people that I have dealt with. The ageless adage of “do unto others” seems to have been pushed by the wayside in a self-centered society where a majority of people wander around totally clueless as to how their behavior impacts others. I believe this thoughtless behavior, focusing solely on self-interests and to heck with everyone else, is the root cause of many of America’s current maladies. Whether we are talking about collapsing stock markets, a National debt that will be unsupportable by the next generation or even highway driving frustrations it comes down to the fact that people are all too often not concerned about how their behavior impacts someone else.…

    • 1238 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays