Question

“What is man born for but to be a reformer, a remake of what man has made; a renouncer of lies; a restorer of truth and good, imitating that great Nature which embosoms us all, and which sleeps no moment on an old past, but every hour repairs herself, yielding every morning a new day, and with every pulsation a new life?”
These sentiments are most characteristic of _______
A. Fundamentalism
B. Social Darwinism
C. Pragmatism
D. Neo-Orthodoxy
E. Transcendentalism

Answer 1

Hint: These lines are of that philosophy that lays emphasis on prior conditions of knowledge and experience. The emphasis is also laid on the unknowable character of ultimate reality. This is a quote from Ralph Waldo Emerson.

Complete answer: Transcendentalism is the philosophy which is reflected through these lines. This is a quote from Ralph Waldo Emerson from his essay ‘Man the Reformer’. Now let us look at what transcendentalism is.

Transcendentalism was a movement which began in the early 19th century in America and it was centred around Ralph Waldo Emerson and also Thoreau. It was a literary, philosophical, religious and also a political movement.
Ralph Waldo Emerson was the one who led the transcendentalist movement in the mid 19th century. He was a critic of the pressures of the society and apart from this he was a champion of individualism.
Transcendentalists basically advocated the idea of personal knowledge of God. they believed that for gaining spiritual insight there was no need for an intermediary. They were huge believers of idealism and apart from this they focused on nature and opposed materialism.
Option A - Fundamentalism - It is a form of religion that believes that interpretation of the scriptures must be done strictly and literally.
Option B - Social Darwinism - It believes that the people who become powerful in a society are those who are innately better than others.
Option C - Pragmatism - It is a belief in which the evaluation of theories and beliefs are done on the basis of whether they are successful in practical application.
Option D - Neo-Orthodoxy - It was a theological movement which was developed after the first world war. It is also known as theology of crisis.
Therefore, the correct answer is option E.

Note: The quote given is from the book ‘Man the Reformer’. The book was written by Ralph Waldo Emerson. He was an American philosopher, writer and poet. He wrote dozens of public essays and gave more than 1500 public lectures.