As the celebrated author of “Self-Reliance,” a pioneer of American thought, and a proponent of Transcendentalism, Ralph Waldo Emerson remains a central figure in studies of 19^th century America and the American Renaissance. This volume explores Emerson’s vast literary and social impact during his lifetime as well as his legacy beyond “Self-Reliance.” Emerson’s other writings are discussed in relation to famous literary works and in relation to the themes of nationhood, oratory, social reform, spiritual education, and the environment. New essays discuss Emerson’s impact on his contemporaries, his relationship to antislavery reform, his poetry, and his influence on present-day literature and thought.