On May 25, 1803, Ralph Waldo Emerson was born in Boston, Massachusetts (Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica 1). His mother, Ruth Haskins Emerson, and his father, Rev. William Emerson, also had seven other children (1). In 1811, Emerson’s father died leaving his aunt, Mary Emerson, to push his writing (1). It could be argued that Mary greatly influenced Emerson’s writing due to her drive and intellect (Baker and Petrulionis 4). Growing …show more content…
In 1829, Emerson married Ellen Louisa Tucker, but after a short three years of marriage she passed away from tuberculosis (1). Struck with sorrow, Emerson began to question his faith and his career (1). In 1812, Emerson attended Boston Public Latin School where his works would first be known(1). In Like his father, Ralph enrolled into Harvard University in 1817 (1). After graduating from Harvard University in 1821, he furthered his education at Harvard Divinity School to become licensed to preach (1). His brother, William, shared criticism and doubts circling Germany (1). After this, everything began to further unravel for Emerson. He had noticed that his teachings did not follow the Unitarian belief system (1). His beliefs entailed having personal experiences, being self-reliant, and self-sufficient (1). He then realized that Unitarianism was not at all what he now believed in, so in 1832, he quit preaching (1). After leaving ministry, Emerson went on an exploration to find more proof of God in Europe (1). Emerson found answers in Paris, France (1). Antoine-Laurent de Jussieu’s work strengthened