Transcendentalism at a Glance, The comparison between Ralph Waldo Emerson's writings, and a Cat Stevens song.

Transcendentalism beliefs quickly came into trend, but as fast as it became popular transcendentalism faded out of American culture. Ralph Waldo Emerson's writings were the basis of the transcendental beliefs in the United States. He traveled around Europe and heard Samuel Taylor Coleridge speak about his own beliefs; Emerson was enthralled and soon returned to the United States to spread the information that believers embraced. He wrote many essays on transcendentalism, which is the belief …

…ideas heard. Emerson and Stevens agreed on the idea of living in the present and leaving the past alone. There are an infinite number of ways to affect the present, but none to change the past. Millions of people, even today, dwell on events that have either saddened or uplifted their spirits. People need to stop and move on into the life they live now instead of the life they have lived in the past.