Emerson

"In the woods, we return to reason and faith. There I feel that nothing can befall me in life, - no disgrace, no calamity (leaving me my eyes), which nature cannot repair. 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 eyeball. I am nothing. I see all. The currents of the Universal Being circulate through me; I am part or particle of God."

-Ralph Waldo Emerson, Nature (1836)

In his essay, "Nature", Ralph Waldo Emerson describes man's relationship to nature and to God. Early on, he describes himself as a "transparent eyeball." In this passage, he expresses his view that nature is purity. Emerson believes being in pure nature brings mankind closer to the way God intended life to be. Through nature man and God are brought together.

Emerson starts with a description of one who has the ideal relationship with nature, "The lover of nature is he whose inward and outward senses are still truly adjusted to each other; who has retained the spirit of infancy even into the era of manhood." Emerson is saying that man needs to retain wonder of nature, a quality often lost as a person ages. People become too distracted by petty conflicts that in Emerson's eyes, are ultimately insignificant.

Emerson states that "In the woods, we return to reason and faith." He is saying that when separated from human civilization we are pure. Without any distractions, we are able to see the world as it is most true. The world is as we as individuals choose to believe it (hence, faith). Man came from nature; in order to see the truth we have to be in a place that is not corrupted by humanity. Man returns to a simpler place, and thus is able to see clearly. He sheds the limitations and impairments of artificial society. Nothing obstructs man from practicing whatever he desires, thus bringing him closer to whoever/whatever he worships. Man appreciates the beauty and pays homage to the one who created it.

Emerson then says "There I feel that nothing can befall me in life, - no disgrace, no calamity (leaving me my eyes), which nature cannot repair." He seems to feel at one with nature. Emerson sees the serenity and peace and realizes how insignificant all of his life's problems are. He believes that there is no problem nature is incapable of remedying. As the saying goes, "Time heals all wounds." Emerson's words seem to echo that. He seems almost completely careless about all his former petty concerns.

His next remark, "Standing on the bare ground, - my head bathed by the blithe air and uplifted into infinite space, - all mean egotism vanishes." He feels free of the bars society has constructed, he is free of all concerns and worries. the "infinite space" he describes indicates a place with no restrictions, where he can be as he ought to, to see the glory and majesty of nature. Emerson also notes that selfishness dissolves as the figurative big picture is made visible. Again, being in this situation enables a man to realize his insignificance as a single being.

"I become a transparent eyeball. I am nothing. I see all." This metaphor embodies the basis of Emerson's