Wally

I believe that Walt Whitman, of the three transcendentalists we read, has impacted me the most. His poetry might be a little hard to understand and he might be a little off, but I think I can relate to him the most. Emerson is the originator of most of Walt's content, but Walt presents it in a way different; more secular and relevant to me. Emerson is mostly concerned with changing the church and its practices; and he is very focused on Jesus, who is not that important to me. Whitman uses Emerson's belief about the individual, but presents them in a less religious fashion. And for a non-religious person like me, it works.
Thoreau would be my person of choice, but there are a few things I don't agree with. I might not agree with some of the stuff Whitman says, but the difference is I don't understand it. Thoreau is a brilliant writer. He can weave descriptions of his surroundings into a transcendentalist testament. I really enjoy and appreciate that, but then he will take a turn and ramble onto something irrelevant and distracting. Thoreau is a little bit of a snob too. He seems very self-important and self-righteous.
Whitman is my man. He the correct balance of: religion & transcendentalism, nature & society, and movement & art. Whitman is not trying to change anyones mind, he is simply trying to get people to think, and buys his poetry. He takes the movement from critical essays and self-important ramblings to a pure form of art, which is just as powerful as any of the other writers. His descriptions and metaphors are something special. I don't understand all of it, but of what I do, I relate to and enjoy it.