Collected works of Ralph Waldo Emerson. Volume VIII, Letters and social aims / introductions and notes by Robert E. Spiller ; text established by Alfred R. Ferguson.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Emerson, Ralph Waldo, 1803-1882.

Contributor:

Spiller, Robert E., writer of foreword.

Ferguson, Alfred R. (Alfred Riggs), 1915-1974, editor.

Series:

Collected Works of Ralph Waldo Emerson

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

American literature.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (672 pages)

Place of Publication:

Cambridge, Massachusetts ; London, England : Belknap Press, [2010]

Summary:

Letters and Social Aims, published in 1875, contains essays originally published early in the 1840s as well as those that were the product of a collaborative effort among Ralph Waldo Emerson, his daughter Ellen Tucker Emerson, his son Edward Waldo Emerson, and his literary executor James Eliot Cabot. The volume takes up the topics of “Poetry and Imagination,” “Social Aims,” “Eloquence,” “Resources,” “The Comic,” “Quotation and Originality,” “Progress of Culture,” “Persian Poetry,” “Inspiration,” “Greatness,” and, appropriately for Emerson’s last published book, “Immortality.” The historical introduction demonstrates for the first time the decline in Emerson’s creative powers after 1865; the strain caused by the preparation of a poetry anthology and delivery of lectures at Harvard during this time; the devastating effect of a house fire in 1872; and how the Emerson children and Cabot worked together to enable Emerson to complete the book. The textual introduction traces this collaborative process in detail and also provides new information about the genesis of the volume as a response to a proposed unauthorized British edition of Emerson’s works. Historical Introduction by Ronald A. Bosco Notes and Parallel Passages by Glen M. Johnson Text Established and Textual Introduction and Apparatus by Joel Myerson

Contents:

Cover

Title Page

Copyright

Preface

Contents

Note on Numbering and Documentation

Abbreviations

Historical Introduction

Statement of Editorial Principles

Textual Introduction

Letters and Social Aims

Chapter 1. Poetry and Imagination

Chapter 2. Social Aims

Chapter 3. Eloquence

Chapter 4. Resources

Chapter 5. The Comic

Chapter 6. Quotation and Originality

Chapter 7. Progress of Culture

Chapter 8. Persian Poetry

Chapter 9. Inspiration

Chapter 10. Greatness

Chapter 11. Immortality

Notes

Textual Apparatus

Annex A: The Manuscripts

Appendix to Annex A: Alterations in the Manuscripts

Annex B: Parallel Passages

Index.

Notes:

Description based on print version record.

ISBN:

9780674053786

0674053788

OCLC:

1281968399