A biography of Ralph Waldo Emerson essays

A biography of Ralph Waldo Emerson essays One of Americas most influential thinkers and authors was Ralph Waldo Emerson. Ralph Waldo Emerson was born in Boston on May 25, 1803. Emerson's dad died when he was only eight, which forced his mom to take in boarders to support the family's needs. When Emerson was only 14, he entered Harvard, where he ran became a sort of secretary for the president of the university. When he graduated Harvard, at age 18, he became a teacher. When he got tired or teaching, he enrolled in the Divinity School, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, to become a preacher. After his graduation of the Divinity School, he started his minister career as a guest speaker at local churches. Three years after his graduation, he was appointed minister of the Second Church of Boston. Because of personal doubts about the Church doctrine, he felt he could no longer administer the Lord's supper, he quit as minister of the Second Church of Boston. After Emerson left his career as a minister, he sailed to Europe, where he met many prominent European writers. A year later, he returned back to the United States, where he settled in Concord Massachusetts. At an oration at Harvard, he gave one of his most famous, if not his most famous speech, "The American Scholar." "The American Scholar," was a speech about being intellectually independent. Intellectually Independent simply means that everyone should think for themselves, and not become a "parrot of other mens thinking." This speech was very important in Emerson's life, because he was able to mention his theory of Transcendentalism to an open audience. Emerson's most popular written work, was probably "Nature." "Nature," was an essay on the theory of Transcendentalism, and his personal views of nature. Although Emerson wrote many famous works, his main source of income was being a public speaker. Among the places Emerson spoke were lyceums, and universities. Although Emerson mainly spoke at l ...

Teenage Pregnancy essays

Teenage Pregnancy essays Although the rate of teenage pregnancy in the United States has declined greatly within the past few years, it is still an enormous problem that needs to be addressed. These rates are still higher in the 1990's than they were only a decade ago. The United State's teenage birthrate exceeds that of most other industrialized nations, even though American teenagers are no more sexually active than teenagers are in Canada or Europe. Recent statistics concerning the teen birthrates are alarming. About 560,000 teenage girls give birth each year. Almost one-sixth of all births in the United States are to teenage women are to teenage women. Eight in ten of these births resulted from unintended pregnancies. (Gormly 347) By the age of eighteen, one out of four teenage girls will have become pregnant. (Newman 679) Although the onset of pregnancy may occur in any teenager, some teens are at higher risk for unplanned pregnancy than others. Teenagers who become sexually active at an earlier age are at a greater risk primarily because young teenagers are less likely to use birthcontrol. African-American and Hispanic teenagers are twice as likely to give birth as are white teenagers. Whites are more likely to have abortions. Teenagers who come from poor neighborhoods and attend segregated schools are at a high risk for pregnancy. Also, teenagers who are doing poorly in school and have few plans for the future are more likely to become parents than those who are doing well and have high educationsl and occupational expectations. Although the rate of teenage pregnancy is higher among low- income African-Americans and Hispanics, especially those in inner city ghettoes, the number of births to teenagers is highest among white, nonpoor young women who live in small cities and towns. (Calhoun 309) In addition to the question of which teenagers become pregnant, interest is s...