Ralph Waldo Emerson outstanding as the best of Emerson's essays, which Bloom listed as "Self-Reliance", "Circles", "Experience", and "nearly all of "Conduct of Life"". In his belief that line lengths, rhythms, and phrases are determined by breath, Emerson's poetry foreshadowed the theories of Charles Olson. Collections Individual essays Poems Letters Ralph Waldo Emerson Ralph Waldo Emerson (May 25, 1803 – April 27, 1882) was an American essayist, lecturer, philosopher, and poet who led the transcendentalist movement of the mid-19th century. He was seen as a champion of individualism and a prescient critic of the countervailing pressures of society, and he disseminated his thoughts
Essays in London and Elsewhere shines through this book's essays on Ibsen and Loti. He brings to each a deep appreciation of their outlook on life and their harsh but effective techniques for presenting it. James is never afraid to point out what he considers faults or omissions in the writers he discusses. But his criticism is never captious, never a wish that a writer was somebody he is not. The essay on Ibsen has biographical relevance and even poignance for James, who would experience a very public failure in the theater just a few years after this book was published. The respect James pays