The 4 I's

Imagination: imagination should stem from nature. And instead of trying to change or control nature, a la' the Enlightenment, Transcendentalists believed we should look to and imitate nature whenever possible because we can only prosper in our natural state. This meant that both art and religion were closely allied with nature.

Intuition: instead of reason as the standard (as in the Enlightenment), Transcendentalist believed that our instincts and emotions should determine our actions.

Innocence: this picks up on the notion that man is corrupted by experience. Instead of a Puritan "we're born in sin," the Transcendentalists believed we're born in innocence, and through experience with the sordid world, we become tainted. Thus, the child is exalted as a vessel of innocence and purity.

Iconoclasm: not following tradition -- in fact, often used to define a movement that deliberately breaks with perceived ideas.