Emerson as a Scientific Thinker

摘要

Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882) was a sage, not a scientist, but he was more keenly interested in the scientific advances of his day than is commonly realized. One of his early aspirations was to be "a naturalist," and he started his career as a lecturer-essayist by giving talks on natural science, including bne focused on the chemical composition of water. Although Emerson went on to make his mark primarily in the areas of literature, religion, philosophy and social reform, he remained an eager lifelong student of both traditional and contemporary natural and social science. To date, however, this side of Emerson's thought and life has attracted only a handful of significant scholarly discussions. Emerson's Life in Science is the best: Of the spate of books on Emerson that have marked the bicentennial of his birth, this is one that will endure.