Lots of points just one question.
"there is a time in every man’s education when he arrives at the conviction that envy is ignorance; that imitation is suici; that he must take himself for better for worse as his portion; that though the wide universe is full of good, no kernel of nourishing corn can come to him but through his toil bestowed on that plot of ground which is given to him to till."
1) in 4-6 sentences, explain what the theme of the above passage is and how it relates to transcendentalism. be sure to back up your answer with textual evidence.

"There is a time in every man’s education when he arrives at the conviction that envy is ignorance; that imitation is suici; that he must take himself for better for worse as his portion; that though the wide universe is full of good, no kernel of nourishing corn can come to him but through his toil bestowed on that plot of ground which is given to him to till."

The theme of the above passage is man desires a certain thing in life, and to cherish what one has, rather than let this greed consume you. Transcendentalism believes that one's own selfish desires and longings help to consume them, and thus corrupting them. The individual is independent if only they can overcome these emotions. So, I think that Transcendentalism has to do with this passage because the man so desires a particular thing, and as he states here "no kernel of nourishing corn can come to him but through his toil bestowed on that plot of ground which is given to him to till." he is saying that no good can come from greed, so that is how this passage relates to Transcendentalism.

the answer is "began" because it is a action that can be done