Device: Aphorism — a brief, memorable, sometimes witty statement of a principle or opinion. Example: “But in my simple ignorance suppose The self-same power that brought me there, brought you. “(Emerson 15) Context: Emerson’s poem The Rhodora is a short, 16 line poem describing the flower rhodora. Emerson notes on line 2 finding “the fresh Rhodora in the woods”, and observing it’s “purple petals fallen in the pool.” He then goes on to tell the read why the Rhodora is so beautiful, phrasing it as a question from “the sages” (Emerson 9). Emerson shortly replies “If eyes were made for seeing, Then beauty is its own excuse for being” (Emerson 11). Finally, Emerson asks, “Why thou wert ther, O rival of the Rose!, I never thought to ask” (Emerson 13), before writing the example. Effect: Emerson uses the quick aphorism to describe the fate of their
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Fate is in no way bound to laws, or to be ordered about. Instead, fate is a natural force, and like animals and those in tune with nature such as the transcendentalists, can be understood through intuition. Even so, by definition it can not be explained through intuition, only known. Given Emerson was a reader of Asian philosophy, it is possible his view on intuition was shaped by the Dao De Jing, Laozi’s work on the Tao. “The Tao that can be told is not the eternal Tao”(Laozi 1). The Transcendentalist idea of intuition and the Tao have many similarities, the largest of which may be their reliance on instinct rather than deduction. By using an aphorism specifically, Emerson reinforces the idea of simplicity and intuition. Aphorisms are short statements of principles, and the shortness drives home. An aphorism gets to the marrow of the lesson. Similarly, intuition is communicated through aphorisms as well. Aphorisms often don’t explain or justify their message; the author relies on the reader to understand and agree with their
Fate is in no way bound to laws, or to be ordered about. Instead, fate is a natural force, and like animals and those in tune with nature such as the transcendentalists, can be understood through intuition. Even so, by definition it can not be explained through intuition, only known. Given Emerson was a reader of Asian philosophy, it is possible his view on intuition was shaped by the Dao De Jing, Laozi’s work on the Tao. “The Tao that can be told is not the eternal Tao”(Laozi 1). The Transcendentalist idea of intuition and the Tao have many similarities, the largest of which may be their reliance on instinct rather than deduction. By using an aphorism specifically, Emerson reinforces the idea of simplicity and intuition. Aphorisms are short statements of principles, and the shortness drives home. An aphorism gets to the marrow of the lesson. Similarly, intuition is communicated through aphorisms as well. Aphorisms often don’t explain or justify their message; the author relies on the reader to understand and agree with their