The Transcendentalist movement was central to defining this period, and nineteenth-century thinkers responded to it in different ways. The movement was not entirely original, and American Transcendentalists borrowed much from the European and Oriental traditions. This volume is a comprehensive guide to the major and minor figures who shaped Transcendentalism in New England, particularly between 1830 and the Civil War. Included are entries for some two hundred writers, philosophers, and theologians who fostered the movement or responded to it in significant ways. While most of the entries are for American thinkers, international figures who advanced Transcendentalism in New England and who were alive until at least 1830 are also covered.
Entries relate the person to Transcendentalism, and each includes bibliographical references.
A short bibliographical essay identifies the most important general biographical sources on American Transcendentalists. Indispensable for libraries, they are little less than that for anyone with a serious interest in American Transcendentalism whose knowledge falls short of encyclopedic. My own copies are already well thumbed. Inc. All rights reserved.