from self-reliance by ralph waldo emerson introducing the essay literary focus: figures of speech...
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from Self-Reliance by Ralph Waldo Emerson
Introducing the Essay
Literary Focus: Figures of Speech
Reading Skills: Understanding Figures of Speech
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from Self-Reliance by Ralph Waldo Emerson
Dover Plains, Dutchess County, New York by Asher Brown Durand
This above all: to thine own self be true.
William Shakespeare
from Self-Reliance by Ralph Waldo Emerson
Emerson believed that a person—not society, the church, or government—is his or her own best authority.
• the unique character and destiny of each individual
• the importance of following one’s inner voice
In this essay he expresses his ideas about
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from Self-Reliance by Ralph Waldo Emerson
Figures of speech are imaginative comparisons of things that are basically unalike.
from Self-Reliance Literary Focus: Figures of Speech
• A figure of speech is not meant to be taken literally.
• Instead, an effective figure of speech helps us see something in a new, imaginative way.
Emerson often uses poetic figures of speech to drive home his philosophical points.
from Self-Reliance Literary Focus: Figures of Speech
Trust thyself: Every heart vibrates to that iron string.from “Self-Reliance” by Ralph Waldo Emerson
idea of self-trust
vibration from an iron string, such as a string on a musical instrument that has been plucked
compared to
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In a good figure of speech, a characteristic of one thing helps us see the other, unlike thing in a new way.
from Self-Reliance Reading Skills: Understanding Figures of Speech
Some of Emerson’s figures of speech are complex. To understand them, you may need to
• read the figure of speech several times
• analyze the points of comparison