Transcendental and anti-transcendentalIn the history of American architecture and arts, the American Renaissance produced two types of philosophies, namely transcendentalism which emphasized the human potential for goodness and exalted the natural. the world as a symbol or reflection of divine beauty, and antitranscendentalism which, partly in reaction to the optimistic and mystical transcendentalist vision, turned its imagination to the dark side of the human spirit and to the hidden evil that they seen hiding in and around humans. Transcendentalism was an important movement in philosophy and literature that flourished in the early to mid-19th century. It was a belief that people could transcend or rise above a physical or material state. Transcendentalists viewed Transcendentalism as a philosophy or way of life, not a religion. This philosophy contained aspects such as self-examination and the celebration of individualism. Fulfillment has been gained when one communicates with nature to find union with the Over Soul – A union between individual consciousness and a collective consciousness. In this collective consciousness, the individual is at the center. The transcendentalist also accepts concepts of nature as a living mystery. They also believed that all knowledge begins with self-knowledge, meaning that if a person does not know themselves, they will not be able to expand that knowledge. The Transcendentalist was at the heart of the American Renaissance. They believed in themes such as nonconformity, self-reliance, free thought, trust, and the importance of nature. The concept of transcendentalism is expressed in Nature, a book by Ralph Waldo Emerson, one of the main players in the transcendentalism movement. Na...... middle of paper ......ntradiction, anti-transcendentalists believe that we should isolate ourselves if we have a sin that we do not want people to know about, in the story of the Black Veil of the minister. Transcendentalist and anti-transcendentalist literatures are very sensible and create an exaggeration about good versus evil. These philosophies shape the understanding of human capabilities. Works cited by Emerson, Ralph Waldo. Nature (extract). The American experience. Ed. Grant Wiggins. UpperSaddle River: Pearson Education, 2010. 366-368. Print. Stearns, Jason. K. Dancing to the glory of monsters: The collapse of the Congo and the Great African War. New York: Public Affairs, 2012. Print.Poe, Edgar Allen. “The Tell-Tale Heart.” Give importance to literature. Ed. John Schilb and John Clifford. 4th ed. Boston: Bedford / St. Martin's, 2009. 1205-209. Print.