Emerson: The Over-Soul; Insights into the Soul (Pre Read)

"The Over-Soul" is an essay by Ralph Waldo Emerson, first published in 1841. With the human soul as its overriding subject, several general themes are treated: (1) the existence and nature of the human soul; (2) the relationship between the soul and the personal ego; (3) the relationship of one human soul to another; and (4) the relationship of the human soul to God. Influence of Eastern religions, including Vedantism, is plainly evident, but the essay also develops ideas long present in the Western tradition, e.g., in the works of Plato, Plutarch, and Neoplatonists like Plotinus and Proclus – all of whose writings Emerson read extensively throughout his career – and Emanuel Swedenborg.

The essay is here.

This group examines the history of Metaphysics by looking primarily at European thinkers in chronological order. Great effort is made to include lesser known thinkers whose thought has historical significance. We will occasionally examine non-European metaphysics too to provide context and comparison.

The organizer is not an expert on Metaphysics but has a long experience in organizing similar meetings. He also has an Oxford PhD in European History as well as a Cambridge MPhil on the same discipline. He currently teaches foreign languages.
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Other meetings in the Metaphysics series:
November 29: Pyrrho: Skepticism and Buddhism in Ancient Greece (Pre Read)
December 6: The African Cosmology of the Bantu-Kongo: Principles of Living (Pre-Read)
December 13: The Greeks and the Irrational: Madmen and Shamans (Pre Read)
December 20: Metaphysics in the Roman Empire: Plotinus as a Mystic by W.T. Stace (Pre Read)
December 27: "The Origins of the Dialectic" by Leszek Kołakowski

Past:
October 11, Hegel
October 17, Schopenhauer
October 24, Why does the Universe exist?
November 1, Aztec Metaphysics