from Self-Reliance by Ralph Waldo Emerson

1. from Self-Reliance by Ralph Waldo Emerson Feature Menu Introducing the Essay Literary Focus: Figures of Speech Reading Skills: Understanding Figures of Speech

2. from Self-Reliance by Ralph Waldo Emerson Dover Plains, Dutchess County, New York by Asher Brown Durand

3. from Self-Reliance by Ralph Waldo Emerson This above all: to thine own self be true. William Shakespeare

4. from Self-Reliance by Ralph Waldo Emerson Emerson believed that a person—not society, the church, or government—is his or her own best authority. In this essay he expresses his ideas about • the unique character and destiny of each individual • the importance of following one’s inner voice [End of Section]

5. from Self-Reliance Literary Focus: Figures of Speech Figures of speechare imaginative comparisons of things that are basically unalike. • A figure of speech is not meant to be taken literally. • Instead, an effective figure of speech helps us see something in a new, imaginative way.

6. compared to from Self-Reliance Literary Focus: Figures of Speech Emerson often uses poetic figures of speech to drive home his philosophical points. Trust thyself: Every heart vibrates to that iron string. from “Self-Reliance” by Ralph Waldo Emerson idea of self-trust vibration from an iron string, such as a string on a musical instrument that has been plucked [End of Section]

7. from Self-Reliance Reading Skills: Understanding Figures of Speech In a good figure of speech, a characteristic of one thing helps us see the other, unlike thing in a new way. Some of Emerson’s figures of speech are complex. To understand them, you may need to • read the figure of speech several times • analyze the points of comparison

8. from Self-Reliance Reading Skills: Understanding Figures of Speech When you come across a difficult figure of speech in the essay, ask yourself: • What do the two things being compared have in common? • Why has the writer chosen this particular comparison? [End of Section]