Grade

The Transparent Eyeball guidebook, for both instructors and the students themselves, explores the philosophical bases behind the concepts introduced in the novel and includes excerpts of works by Thoreau, Emerson, Alcott, Wordsworth, Margaret Fuller, and others who were central to the Transcendentalist Movement. It also provides in-depth discussion questions about both the readings and the novel.

TJ begins having vivid dreams that take him back to the nineteenth century, where he meets Henry David Thoreau and learns about Transcendentalism. TJ soon learns that his classmate Ivy is sharing the dream with him. Together they must solve a murder mystery, which requires them to learn about the views of the Transcendentalists on slavery, women’s rights, and humans’ relationship to the natural world and to the idea of God. Ultimately, Transcendentalism gives TJ a new perspective on how he wants to live his life.