Developed in the late 1820s, Transcendentalism was a philosophical, literary, and intellectual movement that emphasized the individual and living a simple life. He invited people to transcend the knowledge that simply existed in reason and logic into the knowledge that truly resides in imagination, freedom, intuition, and self-confidence. Interestingly, transcendentalism itself has been able to transcend time, as transcendentalist ideas still live in our culture in the works of 20th century poets Walt Whitman, Robert Frost, and Wallace Stevens. This philosophy is not only communicated through literature itself, but is also manifested and celebrated in contemporary films such as “Cast Away” and “The Pursuit of Happyness.” In this essay we will examine two of the most important principles of this philosophy in “Cast Away”: emphasizing a closer relationship with nature as one and celebrating emotions and imagination as another. In short, “Cast Away”, made in the year 2000 (80 years after the first practice of Transcendentalism), is an American adventure drama film that tells the story of Chuck, a time-obsessed systems analyst, who travels around the world solving productivity problems at FedEx depots. He is forced against his will into the wrath of nature when his mail carrier malfunctions and crashes into the ocean near a small, uninhabited island. Chuck is the only person to survive the accident and is therefore forced to fend for himself for the next two years. At the beginning we see a despondent and reluctant person stranded on an island. This person refuses to have any relationship with nature and the environment in which he is stuck and is willing to do everything possible to escape the state of destitution in which he is imprisoned. Initially he tries to point out the ever-changing soc...... middle of paper... and this is the only constant he can hold on to. As time passes, many things must move forward, and if a human being becomes consumed with inspecting and analyzing every passing second and minute, that human being will never evolve. In the 4 years he spent on the island Chuck learned a lot about nature and himself. The experiences he has gained serve as hands that shape Chuck's character and etch him with self-confidence. Self-reliance plays an important role in the film's plot, as it is the only way Chuck uses to save himself. Without being self-sufficient and dependent on himself, Chuck would never have taken that raft to safety and would never have been found adrift by a passing merchant ship. It's just as if the movie itself is shouting out a transcendentalist doctrine: self-reliance is your path to security and a better life..