“That Beauty is the normal state, is shown by the perpetual effort of Nature to attain it.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson
Beauty (Primary source)
In Beauty, Emerson explores how beauty in nature and art reflects a deeper spiritual truth and moral order. He argues that true beauty is not just aesthetic pleasure but a manifestation of the divine, elevating the soul and inspiring virtue.
“The reward of a thing well done, is to have done it.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson Primary source“The law of nature is, do the thing, and you shall have the power: but they who do not the thing have not the power.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson Primary source“Trust thyself: every heart vibrates to that iron string.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson Primary source“Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson Primary sourceMore quotes by Ralph Waldo Emerson →
“Beauty and folly are old companions.”
— Benjamin Franklin Primary source“We are by nature observers, and thereby learners. This is our permanent state.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson Primary source“Nature always wears the colors of the spirit.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson Primary source“Beauty is the quality which makes to endure.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson Primary source