symbolic language. He was not inspired by passion but by the workings of the mind, and he saw poetry as a short-hand way of conveying spiritual ideas. The poet is the one who tells others about the ills and the healing power of this world. The form of the poem, the combination of meter and rhythm, is also developed intellectually in order to shape the argument, communicate the idea, and put forth the symbolism that will introduce the reader or listener to the ideas being conveyed. The poet is capable of bringing together disparate elements of experience and deriving lessons from them which he can then convey to others through his poetry. As noted by Stephenson and Stephenson, in "Self-Reliance" the imagery is of stellar actions that are "science-baffling" and fixed in metaphorical meaning (Stephenson and Stephenson 81-82).
"Self-Reliance" is a very important element in Emerson's overall philosophy. It is one of the essays outlining Emerson's views of the individual and how the individual relates to other people and to the universe as a whole. The concept of self-reliance as described by Emerson fits well with the individualism in American life, and Emerson did indeed intend an interpretation on the basils of self-reliance on the plane of ordinary human existence. At the same time, he had a larger transcendental aim in mind and applied this latter to his own life in particular. It is this second type of self-reliance that would be so important to flowers of Emerson, such as Thoreau, who tried to live the idea by separating himself from the rest of the world and by relying on himself and nature alone. Part of this is an intellectual matter--Emerson wanted to be able to understand the universe and to express his views to others, and to this end he saw a need to separate himself from the intrusive pursuits undertaken by other men, the race for riches and comfort that prevented men from seeing the underlying reality of the worl...