Ralph Waldo Emerson was an American essayist, lecturer, philosopher, abolitionist, and poet who led the transcendentalist movement of the mid-19th century. He is today seen as a champion of individualism and a prescient critic of the countervailing pressures of society. Collected here in one convenient volume is Ralph Waldo Emerson's First Series and Second Series of essays. The collection includes both Self-Reliance and Nature. Essays - First Series 1. History 2. Self-Reliance 3. Compensation 4. Spiritual Laws 5. Love 6. Friendship 7. Prudence 8. Heroism 9. The Over-Soul 10. Circles 11. Intellect 12. Art Essays - Second Series 1. The Poet 2. Experience 3. Character 4. Manners 5. Gifts 6. Nature 7. Politics 8. Nominalist and Realist 9. New England Reformers