Emerson and Thoreau both expressed Transcendental idealism and optimism in their writings. But despite the radicalism of some of his ideas, in his life and in much of his work Emerson embraced society, civilization, and the heritage of the past far more than Thoreau was able to do. Emerson was a man of the world as well as a man of the mind and spirit. He was born to a certain social position and to certain expectations, and he sought to do his duty by them. It grieved him to reject the traditions of the religion in which he had been raised and to sever his ties with the Second Church in Boston. He followed his intellect and his conscience, but not without awareness of the tension between life and philosophy. The unity of Thoreau's life and his art was far greater than that of Emerson's. Ironically, Emerson's less perfect synthesis, his more worldly pragmatism, allowed him to achieve greater recognition and respect during his lifetime than did Thoreau and, consequently, more immediately to advance the idealism and individuality to which both of these major Transcendental thinkers were committed.
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