Lessons from an American Stoic

April 17, 2023
In this contemplative essay collection, memoirist Matousek (When You’re Falling, Dive) draws life lessons from the philosophy of Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882), “the eloquent voice of America’s conscience.” Specifically, Matousek focuses on Emerson’s thinking on self-reliance, and how it can “dispel the illusion of our powerlessness” in a society that can feel fragile or dangerous. The author encourages readers to “cultivate the art of being alone” to develop self-knowledge (“With practice, solitude becomes the ‘place where we are least alone’”), forge resilience that’s inextricable from vulnerability (or, as Emerson wrote, “Our strength grows out of our weakness”), and adopt a practice of journaling (Emerson’s journal was his “closest companion” beginning at age 14). Emerson’s worldview is cogently conveyed, and readers will find comfort in his principles’ staying power and the knowledge that what Matousek dubs America’s current “torn-in-half feeling of tenuous survival” is anything but new. Those looking for commonsense guidance to a more self-directed life will find it here.