Ralph Waldo Emerson
About the Author
Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882) was an American essayist, poet and lecturer, formerly a Unitarian minister, and a central figure in Transcendentalism. His journals record the development of his religious, philosophical and literary thought. He spoke at the founding meeting of the Free Religious Association in Boston in 1867.
Resources by Ralph Waldo Emerson
Ralph Waldo Emerson über Goethe und Shakespeare
German versions of Emerson’s essays on Goethe and Shakespeare, followed by Hermann Grimm’s critical essay on Emerson’s writings. Published in 1857, the volume is a primary source for Emerson’s reception among German readers.
Hannover: Carl Rümpler, 1857, 116 pages with preliminary matter. The title page credits Grimm’s critique but does not give a separate translator’s name. Navigation follows the three original section dividers. The complete scan preserves the numbered text and unnumbered divider leaves.
Read LessThe Letters of Ralph Waldo Emerson, Volume II (1836–1841)
Volume II of Ralph L. Rusk’s six-volume edition of Ralph Waldo Emerson’s correspondence, covering 1836–1841. The letters and editorial annotations provide primary material for studying Emerson’s intellectual, literary and personal networks.
New York: Columbia University Press, 1939. Edited by Ralph L. Rusk. This is an external-access catalogue record.
View the digitized copy and access options at Internet Archive. For a physical copy, request this title, editor, publication year and volume through a library catalogue or interlibrary loan.
Read LessThe Letters of Ralph Waldo Emerson, Volume IV (1848–1855)
Volume IV of Ralph L. Rusk’s six-volume edition of Ralph Waldo Emerson’s correspondence, covering 1848–1855. The letters and editorial annotations provide primary material for studying Emerson’s intellectual, literary and personal networks.
New York: Columbia University Press, 1939. Edited by Ralph L. Rusk. This is an external-access catalogue record.
View the digitized copy and access options at Internet Archive. For a physical copy, request this title, editor, publication year and volume through a library catalogue or interlibrary loan.
Read LessMiscellanies
Ralph Waldo Emerson’s speeches and essays on religion, public affairs, reform and commemoration, with notes by Edward Waldo Emerson. The collection includes his tribute to Theodore Parker and addresses at the organization and a subsequent annual meeting of the Free Religious Association.
Project Gutenberg reading edition, released in 2023 from an undated Houghton, Mifflin and Company edition. Its copyright page lists 1878, 1883, 1904 and 1906; the file should therefore not be identified simply as a 1904 edition. Navigation follows the original contents and the editor’s notes. Project Gutenberg’s credits and licence are retained.
Source edition and download options.
Read LessJournals of Ralph Waldo Emerson, Volume X: 1864–1876
Volume X of Ralph Waldo Emerson’s journals, covering 1864–1876, edited with annotations by Edward Waldo Emerson and Waldo Emerson Forbes. These notebooks preserve observations, reading, drafts and reflections that illuminate the development of Emerson’s literary and religious thought.
This is the 1914 Houghton Mifflin edition, published in Boston and New York. The editors selected and annotated the manuscript material; it is not a complete diplomatic transcription of the surviving notebooks. The table of contents follows the publication’s principal journal divisions. The volume supplies primary evidence for Emerson’s thought; inclusion in this collection does not establish a particular German Free Religious influence.
Read LessJournals of Ralph Waldo Emerson, Volume IX: 1856–1863
Volume IX of Ralph Waldo Emerson’s journals, covering 1856–1863, edited with annotations by Edward Waldo Emerson and Waldo Emerson Forbes. These notebooks preserve observations, reading, drafts and reflections that illuminate the development of Emerson’s literary and religious thought.
This is the 1913 Houghton Mifflin edition, published in Boston and New York. The editors selected and annotated the manuscript material; it is not a complete diplomatic transcription of the surviving notebooks. The table of contents follows the publication’s principal journal divisions. The volume supplies primary evidence for Emerson’s thought; inclusion in this collection does not establish a particular German Free Religious influence.
Read LessJournals of Ralph Waldo Emerson, Volume VIII: 1849–1855
Volume VIII of Ralph Waldo Emerson’s journals, covering 1849–1855, edited with annotations by Edward Waldo Emerson and Waldo Emerson Forbes. These notebooks preserve observations, reading, drafts and reflections that illuminate the development of Emerson’s literary and religious thought.
This is the 1912 Houghton Mifflin edition, published in Boston and New York. The editors selected and annotated the manuscript material; it is not a complete diplomatic transcription of the surviving notebooks. The table of contents follows the publication’s principal journal divisions. The volume supplies primary evidence for Emerson’s thought; inclusion in this collection does not establish a particular German Free Religious influence.
Read LessJournals of Ralph Waldo Emerson, Volume VII: 1845–1848
Volume VII of Ralph Waldo Emerson’s journals, covering 1845–1848, edited with annotations by Edward Waldo Emerson and Waldo Emerson Forbes. These notebooks preserve observations, reading, drafts and reflections that illuminate the development of Emerson’s literary and religious thought.
This is the 1912 Houghton Mifflin edition, published in Boston and New York. The editors selected and annotated the manuscript material; it is not a complete diplomatic transcription of the surviving notebooks. The table of contents follows the publication’s principal journal divisions. The volume supplies primary evidence for Emerson’s thought; inclusion in this collection does not establish a particular German Free Religious influence.
Read LessJournals of Ralph Waldo Emerson, Volume VI: 1841–1844
Volume VI of Ralph Waldo Emerson’s journals, covering 1841–1844, edited with annotations by Edward Waldo Emerson and Waldo Emerson Forbes. These notebooks preserve observations, reading, drafts and reflections that illuminate the development of Emerson’s literary and religious thought.
This is the 1911 Houghton Mifflin edition, published in Boston and New York. The editors selected and annotated the manuscript material; it is not a complete diplomatic transcription of the surviving notebooks. The table of contents follows the publication’s principal journal divisions. The volume supplies primary evidence for Emerson’s thought; inclusion in this collection does not establish a particular German Free Religious influence.
Read LessJournals of Ralph Waldo Emerson, Volume V: 1838–1841
Volume V of Ralph Waldo Emerson’s journals, covering 1838–1841, edited with annotations by Edward Waldo Emerson and Waldo Emerson Forbes. These notebooks preserve observations, reading, drafts and reflections that illuminate the development of Emerson’s literary and religious thought.
This is the 1911 Houghton Mifflin edition, published in Boston and New York. The editors selected and annotated the manuscript material; it is not a complete diplomatic transcription of the surviving notebooks. The table of contents follows the publication’s principal journal divisions. The volume supplies primary evidence for Emerson’s thought; inclusion in this collection does not establish a particular German Free Religious influence.
Read LessJournals of Ralph Waldo Emerson, Volume IV: 1836–1838
Volume IV of Ralph Waldo Emerson’s journals, covering 1836–1838, edited with annotations by Edward Waldo Emerson and Waldo Emerson Forbes. These notebooks preserve observations, reading, drafts and reflections that illuminate the development of Emerson’s literary and religious thought.
This is the 1910 Houghton Mifflin edition, published in Boston and New York. The editors selected and annotated the manuscript material; it is not a complete diplomatic transcription of the surviving notebooks. The table of contents follows the publication’s principal journal divisions. The volume supplies primary evidence for Emerson’s thought; inclusion in this collection does not establish a particular German Free Religious influence.
Read LessJournals of Ralph Waldo Emerson, Volume III: 1833–1835
Volume III of Ralph Waldo Emerson’s journals, covering 1833–1835, edited with annotations by Edward Waldo Emerson and Waldo Emerson Forbes. These notebooks preserve observations, reading, drafts and reflections that illuminate the development of Emerson’s literary and religious thought.
This is the 1910 Houghton Mifflin edition, published in Boston and New York. The editors selected and annotated the manuscript material; it is not a complete diplomatic transcription of the surviving notebooks. The table of contents follows the publication’s principal journal divisions. The volume supplies primary evidence for Emerson’s thought; inclusion in this collection does not establish a particular German Free Religious influence.
Read LessJournals of Ralph Waldo Emerson, Volume II: 1824–1832
Volume II of Ralph Waldo Emerson’s journals, covering 1824–1832, edited with annotations by Edward Waldo Emerson and Waldo Emerson Forbes. These notebooks preserve observations, reading, drafts and reflections that illuminate the development of Emerson’s literary and religious thought.
This is the 1909 Houghton Mifflin edition, published in Boston and New York. The editors selected and annotated the manuscript material; it is not a complete diplomatic transcription of the surviving notebooks. The table of contents follows the publication’s principal journal divisions. The volume supplies primary evidence for Emerson’s thought; inclusion in this collection does not establish a particular German Free Religious influence.
Read LessJournals of Ralph Waldo Emerson, Volume I: 1820–1824
Volume I of Ralph Waldo Emerson’s journals, covering 1820–1824, edited with annotations by Edward Waldo Emerson and Waldo Emerson Forbes. These notebooks preserve observations, reading, drafts and reflections that illuminate the development of Emerson’s literary and religious thought.
This is the 1909 Houghton Mifflin edition, published in Boston and New York. The editors selected and annotated the manuscript material; it is not a complete diplomatic transcription of the surviving notebooks. The table of contents follows the publication’s principal journal divisions. The volume supplies primary evidence for Emerson’s thought; inclusion in this collection does not establish a particular German Free Religious influence.
Read LessArticle and chapter contributions
Entries this person contributed to inside a larger issue or volume. They are not listed as authors of the whole issue.
- Ralph Waldo Emerson über Goethe und Shakespeare — Goethe, der Schriftsteller. (Author) — p. 10
- Ralph Waldo Emerson über Goethe und Shakespeare — Shakespeare, der Dichter. (Author) — p. 56