Ralph Waldo Emerson was an American philosopher and poet, known for. A staunch advocate of individualism and clear-sighted critic of societal pressures, he led the early 19th century's Transcendentalist movement and greatly influenced the later New Thought movement. Representative Men contains the following seven lectures by Emerson: Uses of Great Men Plato; or, the Philosopher Swedenborg; or, the Mystic Montaigne; or, the Skeptic Shakspeare; or, the Poet Napoleon; or, the Man of the World Goethe; or, the Writer