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Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1903. 12 volumes. Set No. 173 of 600 numbered with a hand-written Emerson original double-sided manuscript leaf in ink, bound in Volume 1, and hand-Signed by Publishers, Henry O. Houghton & George Mifflin. Numerous mounted photogravure illustrations. Three-quarter leather. Gilt tooling to the spine front and rear panels. Top edge gilt, marbled end papers and raised band. Large Octavo. Minimal wear, no fading. The autograph manuscript leaf is from Emerson's work "English Traits," which was originally published in 1856. An exceptional set of Emerson's Works enhanced by the inclusion of the manuscript page. Ralph Waldo Emerson (May 25, 1803 ¿ April 27, 1882), known professionally as Waldo Emerson, was an American essayist, lecturer, and poet who led the transcendentalist movement of the mid-19th century. He was seen as a champion of individualism and a prescient critic of the countervailing pressures of society, and he disseminated his thoughts through dozens of published essays and more than 1,500 public lectures across the United States. Emerson wrote on a number of subjects, never espousing fixed philosophical tenets, but developing certain ideas such as individuality, freedom, the ability for humankind to realize almost anything, and the relationship between the soul and the surrounding world. Emerson's "nature" was more philosophical than naturalistic: "Philosophically considered, the universe is composed of Nature and the Soul". Emerson is one of several figures who "took a more pantheist approach by rejecting views of God as separate from the world." He remains among the pillars of the American romantic movement, and his work has greatly influenced the thinkers, writers and poets that followed him. When asked to sum up his work, he said his central doctrine was "the infinitude of the private man." Emerson is also well known as a mentor and friend of Henry David Thoreau, a fellow transcendentalist. Seller Inventory # 025596
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