The Dial in Transcendentalism
The Dial was the journal that members of the Transcendental Club founded in 1840. They wanted a platform to bring their ideas to the general public, but since they were having a hard time getting their essays and articles published in conventional periodicals, they decided to up and start their own.
The Dial only lasted between 1840 and 1844 (it was revived years later, but we're talking basics here). That was because the Transcendentalists didn't find as many subscribers as they'd hoped, and the journal didn't exactly bring in the big bucks.
Still, for those four years the journal served as the primary publication of the Transcendentalists. Ralph Waldo Emerson, who wrote the introduction to the first issue in 1840, called it a "journal in a new spirit." Which spirit? The Transcendental spirit, of course.
Chew on This
Henry David Thoreau contributed loads of articles, essays, and other works to The Dial after it was founded in 1840. You best believe that the founding of the journal was a pretty key moment in the timeline of Thoreau's life.
Speaking of timelines, The Dial was a big ole deal for our buddy Ralph Waldo Emerson, too. In 1942 he took over editorship of The Dial from Margaret Fuller. Unfortunately, the magazine folded two years later. Nonetheless, a pretty transcendent moment for our friends—get it??