Emerson: Who is He that Shall Control Me?
Who is he that shall control me?
Why may not I act & speak & write & think
with entire freedom? What am I to the
Universe, or, the Universe, what
is it to me?
Who hath forged the chains of Wrong & Right,
of Opinion & Custom? And must I wear them?
Is Society my anointed King?
Or is there any mightier community
or any man or more than man,
whose slave I am?
I am solitary in the vast society of beings;
I consort with no species; I indulge no
sympathies. I see the world, human,
brute & inanimate nature; I am in
the midst of them, but not of them;
I hear the song of the storm— the
Winds & warring Elements sweep by me—
but they mix not with my being.
I see cities & nations & witness passions—
the roar of their laughter— but I partake
it not;— the yell of their grief— it touches
no chord in me; their fellowships & fashions,
lusts & virtues, the words & deeds they
call glory & shame— I disclaim them all.
I say to the Universe, Mighty one! thou art
not my mother; Return to chaos, if thou wilt,
I shall still exist. I live. If I owe my being,
it is to a destiny greater than thine.
Star by Star, world by world,
system by system shall be crushed—
but I shall live.
Journal, Dec. 21, 1823
MountainYoda / Mountain Yoda
npub18f…h79qx
2024-08-08 00:00:56
Author Public Key
npub18fpjhsxtsl4yusarwwp9gq4q36etkfugl4p4hp0zfz8mjm4twlkqmh79qxPublished at
2024-08-08 00:00:56Event JSON
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"content": "Emerson: Who is He that Shall Control Me? \n\nWho is he that shall control me? \nWhy may not I act \u0026 speak \u0026 write \u0026 think \nwith entire freedom? What am I to the \nUniverse, or, the Universe, what \nis it to me? \n\nWho hath forged the chains of Wrong \u0026 Right, \nof Opinion \u0026 Custom? And must I wear them? \nIs Society my anointed King? \nOr is there any mightier community \nor any man or more than man, \nwhose slave I am? \n\nI am solitary in the vast society of beings; \nI consort with no species; I indulge no \nsympathies. I see the world, human, \nbrute \u0026 inanimate nature; I am in \nthe midst of them, but not of them; \nI hear the song of the storm— the \nWinds \u0026 warring Elements sweep by me— \nbut they mix not with my being. \n\nI see cities \u0026 nations \u0026 witness passions— \nthe roar of their laughter— but I partake \nit not;— the yell of their grief— it touches \nno chord in me; their fellowships \u0026 fashions, \nlusts \u0026 virtues, the words \u0026 deeds they \ncall glory \u0026 shame— I disclaim them all. \n\nI say to the Universe, Mighty one! thou art \nnot my mother; Return to chaos, if thou wilt, \nI shall still exist. I live. If I owe my being, \nit is to a destiny greater than thine. \n\nStar by Star, world by world, \nsystem by system shall be crushed— \nbut I shall live.\n\nJournal, Dec. 21, 1823",
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