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Walt Whitman wrote "O Me! O Life!" as a way of expressing the concept of the pursuit of personal dreams, and a way to spark more enjoyment in the little parts of the world that may otherwise seem terrible. He does this through a masterful perspective, casting himself in the lens of himself looking at the world around him as if he were conversing with someone about a memory that he had or an odd sight. Further, contrasting the answer segment of the poem to a description of society contributes to the purpose and importance of individualism. My photo represents the doors of life that open when someone chooses to follow their dreams and aspirations.

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1A: Excerpt from Walden- "Where I Lived and What I Lived For"

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1A: Excerpt from Walden- "Where I Lived and What I Lived For"

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"I have been as sincere a worshipper of Aurora as the Greeks. I got up early and bathed in the pond; that was a religious exercise, and one of the best things which I did. They say that characters were engraven on the bathing tub of King Tching-thang to this effect: 'Renew thyself completely each day; do it again, and again, and forever again.' I can understand that."

-Henry David Thoreau

The image of water at sunrise ties into the value that there should be a return to nature, which Thoreau shows through his bath and reflection at dawn, while he is by himself in the excerpt.

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"politics, the most alarming of them all—I am pleased to see how little space they occupy in the landscape. Politics is but a narrow field, and that still narrower highway yonder leads to it. I sometimes direct the traveler thither. If you would go to the political world, follow the great road, follow that market-man, keep his dust in your eyes, and it will lead you straight to it; for it, too, has its place merely, and does not occupy all space."

-Henry David Thoreau

The image represents the Transcendentalist concept of social reform, having the dirt path to provide a way back to nature, and equality amongst all people, and the paved road to represent the human vices that Thoreau mentions.

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"Standing on the bare ground, — my head bathed by the blithe air, and uplifted into infinite space, — all mean egotism vanishes. I become a transparent eye-ball; I am nothing; I see all; the currents of the Universal Being circulate through me; I am part or particle of God. The name of the nearest friend sounds then foreign and accidental: to be brothers, to be acquaintances, — master or servant, is then a trifle and a disturbance"

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

The crystal ball in the image represents the process of transcending; being one with nature and self, and seeing the world through a new scope, like the ball does in the picture.

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"Beauty, in its largest and profoundest sense, is one expression for the universe. God is the all-fair. Truth, and goodness, and beauty, are but different faces of the same All. But beauty in nature is not ultimate. It is the herald of inward and eternal beauty, and is not alone a solid and satisfactory good. It must stand as a part, and not as yet the last or highest expression of the final cause of Nature"

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

The close-up shot of the butterfly is meant to capture the beauty that Emerson refers to in his quote and resemble the connection to nature that Transcendentalism stresses.

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"What I must do is all that concerns me, not what the people think. This rule, equally arduous in actual and in intellectual life, may serve for the whole distinction between greatness and meanness. It is the harder, because you will always find those who think they know what is your duty better than you know it"

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

The red rose in the image represents individuality, being the one that decides to defy "societal" expectations and do what it thinks is best, a tenet of Transcendentalism that encourages making decisions for yourself, and living the life that you want to lead.

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Carving out his own future, Neil takes initiative for his passion and pursuit of happiness.

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"A little secret for you, huddle up. Huddle up! We don't read and write poetry because it's cute. We read and write poetry because we are members of the human race, and the human race is filled with passion. Medicine, law, business, engineering, these are noble pursuits and necessary to sustain life. But poetry, beauty, romance, love, these are what we stay alive for"

-Mr. Keating, Dead Poets Society

In Dead Poets Society, when Neil Perry decides to perform in the play, even though it goes against his father's command and Neil's school's wishes, he still does it, making a move for himself, and operating individually, without the taint of anybody or anything to make him reconsider.

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Who am I? I ask myself that question a lot when I feel uncertain about what I want to be in life. Really, it seems like uncertainty is the only constant I have in my life, like there a hundreds of variables pulling on me telling me to be or do or try or see one thing or another. So what do I want to do with my life? I want to be someone who helps others figure it all out. Through the vulgar, beautiful, rash, elegant, heart-throbbing story, I want to be someone who helps people stake their lives in the moment of a fleeting verse. I want to help others figure out what they themselves want to do whether it be by giving advice, being there for them when life gets hard, or supporting their passions and aspirations.

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In the movie Perfect Days, although the main character, Hirayama cleans toilets as his job, he is content with life and finds satisfaction and beauty in every detail of the world life has to offer, something that someone else might not be able to see.

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I was strained when the mountains called my name

They whispered to me, they whispered: “Come… come, it is fleeting”

With every inch of fiber left, I trudged over

We talked about what it meant to make

I came back ready to change

I was tired when the mountains called my name

They sang lullabies to me, they sang: “Come… come, it is losing purpose”

With every fragment of energy left, I toiled over

We talked about what it means to be

I came back as myself

I was scared when the mountains called my name

They spoke to me, they said: “Come… come, before it is gone”

With every shred of convocation left, I stumbled over

We talked about what it means to live

I came back ready

What will I do?

Who am I?

What if I can’t?

Only the mountains will ever know

Only we will ever know

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#WhatItMeans represents the pursuit of finding meaning in life, similar to individualism, a practice that involves pursuing the purpose and passion in life; personally finding out "what it means" to live, no matter the path, no matter the difficulty.

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the warm sun kisses my skin and reminds me of the wonder and beauty that the world has to offer.

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All forms of media are a very common and accepted pastime, but journaling is just as good, much more insightful, and helpful, and I find it more enjoyable.

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The intricacies and simple beauty of the flower remind me of the charm and soul of the universe, being so complex and grand, yet so simple and grounded, but most of all, familiar when seen up close.

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Day-to-day life is full of people chasing monetary gain and what others tell them to do, how can people take hold of their lives and live a life of self-reliance and individualism?

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Although it lays its roots in older times, Transcendentalism never fails to provide wisdom and truth in the modern world, even though so much has changed in world since now and then, like technology which has gone from monochrome to full color saturation within the time that Transcendentalism has existed.

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Thesis: "The Transcendentalist concepts of nature, self-reliance, and individualism sustain a modern-day presence through political and social movements, which, in turn, have a beneficial effect on nature, societal lives, and personal lives, respectively."

Quote 1: "societies and government agencies sprouting from the Transcendentalist concept that nature is a fundamental part of what it takes to live a meaningful life shows the correlation between the two. That is, in both classic Transcendentalism and modern-day application, nature is seen as an entity that is closely related to humans, and humans require it for fulfillment and understanding of the world around them, and therefore it must be preserved."

Quote 2: "The promotion of values of individual control over that of others “above” one person in the world proves that the Transcendentalist belief of individualism still holds in society today, which is very similar to how Thoreau described the railroad workers' feelings about their jobs and financial situation, showing a correlation between the two and a time proof value that Transcendentalism offers"