Ralph Waldo Emerson, the nineteenth century's greatest American liberal thinker, was, along with Frederick Douglass, the most important intellectual to engage the race issue. Friend of John Brown, collaborator with Garrison and Phillips, peripheral participant in the Underground Railroad, Emerson nevertheless remained conflicted about many issues relating to race and the character of the American nation. This essay seeks to explain the trajectory of Emerson's antislavery commitments as well as the developments of his broader political thought in the context of his evolving views on race. A close scrutiny of Emerson's racial prejudices, such as they were, reveals how in critical ways they circumscribed his larger social and political thought and limited his actions.
Tijdschrift beschrijving