Book 4, The Conduct of Life : Chapter 17, Fate & More Summary and Analysis

There are thirty-seven separate pieces assembled in this final book. These include brief essays and also letters - epistles. They were written within the years 1840 - 1844. The first piece is about Christian Communion as a rite. Emerson opens the issue by introducing readers to the reality of the history of controversy connected with this. Along with this, he describes just a few of the different ways this ritual has been been conducted over the course of the centuries. Emerson also includes that some Christian denominations, such as the Quakers, have ceased using the rite altogether, feeling that it has either become outmoded or that it has been so embroiled in religious politics that the value of it has been decimated or devastated. Emerson quotes Scriptures and asserts...