transcendentalism

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   a nineteenth-century American philosophical and literary movement that emphasized spiritual intuition, individual conscience, and the inherent goodness of people and nature

   Emerson's essays made transcendentalism a major force in New England intellectual life.

2. 2
   noun

   a philosophical approach, especially associated with Kant, that examines the a priori conditions that make knowledge or experience possible

   The seminar compared Kant's transcendentalism with later forms of idealism.

3. 3
   noun

   lofty, visionary, or spiritual speculation, sometimes regarded as vague or impractical

   The doctor dismissed the proposal as transcendentalism unsupported by observable evidence.

Formed from transcendental + -ism and influenced by German Transzendentalismus. Transcendental ultimately comes from Latin transcendere, 'to climb or pass beyond,' from trans-, 'across or beyond,' + scandere, 'to climb.' The term developed distinct Kantian and American Romantic applications.

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