Tava Kairaiuak

Thinking for Yourself

It is extremely easy, especially in this world, to become a follower and forget to think for yourself. We become lost in what others are doing and forget we can have opinions and original thoughts. “Self- Reliance” an essay written by Ralph Waldo Emerson in 1841, explores themes such as nonconformity as a way to experience goodness, trusting yourself and what has been given to you and the importance of having a mind that you can change.

Nonconformity, by definition is the failure or refusal to conform to an existing ruling or practice. Emerson speaks plainly about this topic and says, “Whose would be a man must be a nonconformist.” To me this goes back to my main point about being able to think for yourself and not be afraid to not conform. Emerson again hints at the idea of not conforming and thinking for yourself, “Nothing is at last sacred but the integrity of your own mind. Absolve you to yourself, and you shall have the suffrage of the world…”

Emerson introduces the idea that you should trust yourself and what has been given to you. I think the quote, “Trust thyself: every heart vibrates to that iron string.” communicates trust in yourself and realize that you have a purpose on this world, which can also be interchanged with thinking for yourself. To further elaborate on the idea that every human has a purpose is a quote that says, “Accept the place the divine providence has found for you…”

Changing one’s mind is often looked at as a negative thing, but Ralph Waldo Emerson thinks that it’s crucial to being self- reliant. It shows your are able to think for yourself and change your mind. For example, if you thought one thing and then learned new information you would change your way of thinking and take account of this new information. Changing your mind also keeps things interesting. Emerson says, “With consistency a great soul has simply nothing to do.”

“Self- Reliance” an essay written by Ralph Waldo Emerson is a piece that embraces the fact that you do not have to conform, you should trust in yourself and your intuition and it is crucial to constantly and be able to change your mind. You should see his words and question, are we really self- reliant, should we be striving to be self- reliant or do we even want to be self-reliant?