Emerson’s Western Rendering of Asian Esoteric Language

ABSTRACT: The writings of Ralph Waldo Emerson revolve around ideas pertaining to the possibility ofcontaining all of cosmos within the mind of the individual, which can be viewed in relation to the philosophywhich propagates a supposedly separate, universal; all-inclusive “American” identity apart from a supposedlytraditional, oppressive European equivalent. Emerson attempts to achieve this by utilizing the concept of “theOrient.” His writings do this by rendering interpretations of concepts presented in Asian texts, particularlymedieval Persian Sufi poetry and classical Hindu texts, into Western discourse and mindset. Such an endeavor,however, disregards the right of non-European realities to speak for and define themselves. Thus the Emerson’seffort to establish the millennial America violates autonomy of non-European voices.

Keywords : American literature, cultural translation, orientalism, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Transcendentalism,