Summary: In 1984, the literary scholar Harold Bloom had this to say about Ralph Waldo Emerson: “Emerson is the mind of our climate, the principal source of the American difference in poetry, criticism and pragmatic post-philosophy…. Emerson, by no means the greatest American writer… is the inescapable theorist of all subsequent American writing. From his moment to ours, American authors either are in his tradition, or else in a counter-tradition originating in opposition to him.” Who was Emerson? How did he become so influential? What did he unlock in American literature? And what can we take from his works today?<br> Learn more about the show at <a href="http://www.historyofliterature.com/">historyofliterature.com</a>. Support the show at <a href="http://www.patreon.com/literature">patreon.com/literature</a>.<br> <a class="synved-social-button synved-social-button-share synved-social-size-48 synved-social-resolution-single synved-social-provider-facebook nolightbox" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" title="Share on Facebook" href="http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fhistoryofliterature.com%2F111-the-americanest-american-ralph-waldo-emerson%2F&t=111%20The%20Americanest%20American%20%E2%80%93%20Ralph%20Waldo%20Emerson&s=100&p%5Burl%5D=http%3A%2F%2Fhistoryofliterature.com%2F111-the-americanest-american-ralph-waldo-emerson%2F&p%5Bimages%5D%5B0%5D=https%3A%2F%2Fi0.wp.com%2Fhistoryofliterature.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2017%2F09%2FEmerson-Eyeball.png%3Ffit%3D1200%252C628&p%5Btitle%5D=111%20The%20Americanest%20American%20%E2%80%93%20Ralph%20Waldo%20Emerson" style="font-size: 0px; width: 48px; height: 48px; margin: 0; margin-bottom: 5px; margin-right: 5px;"></a><a class="synved-social-button synved-social-button-share synved-social-size-48 synved-social-resolution-single synved-social-provider-twitter nolightbox" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" title="Share on Twitter" href="https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=http%3A%2F%2Fhistoryofliterature.com%2F111-the-americanest-american-ralph-waldo-emerson%2F&text=Hey%20check%20this%20out" style="font-size: 0px; width: 48px; height: 48px; margin: 0; margin-bottom: 5px; margin-right: 5px;"></a><a class="synved-social-button synved-social-button-share synved-social-size-48 synved-social-resolution-single synved-social-provider-google_plus nolightbox" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" title="Share on Google+" href="https://plus.google.com/share?url=http%3A%2F%2Fhistoryofliterature.com%2F111-the-americanest-american-ralph-waldo-emerson%2F" style="font-size: 0px; width: 48px; height: 48px; margin: 0; margin-bottom: 5px; margin-right: 5px;"></a><a class="synved-social-button synved-social-button-share synved-social-size-48 synved-social-resolution-single synved-social-provider-reddit nolightbox" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" title="Share on Reddit" href="http://www.reddit.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fhistoryofliterature.com%2F111-the-americanest-american-ralph-waldo-emerson%2F&title=111%20The%20Americanest%20American%20%E2%80%93%20Ralph%20Waldo%20Emerson" style="font-size: 0px; width: 48px; height: 48px; margin: 0; margin-bottom: 5px; margin-right: 5px;"></a><a class="synved-social-button synved-social-button-share synved-social-size-48 synved-social-resolution-single synved-social-provider-pinterest nolightbox" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" title="Pin it with Pinterest" href="http://pinterest.com/pin/create/button/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fhistoryofliterature.com%2F111-the-americanest-american-ralph-waldo-emerson%2F&media=https%3A%2F%2Fi0.wp.com%2Fhistoryofliterature.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2017%2F09%2FEmerson-Eyeball.png%3Ffit%3D1200%252C628&description=111%20The%20Americanest%20American%20%E2%80%93%20Ralph%20Waldo%20Emerson" style="font-size: 0px; width: 48px; height: 48px; margin: 0; margin-bottom: 5px; margin-right: 5px;"></a>
