But genius always looks forward. The eyes of man are set in his forehead, not in his hindhead. Man hopes. Genius creates. To create—to create—is the proof of a divine presence.
Emerson contrasts genuine creativity with excessive attention to the past. His image of the eyes facing forwards suggests that human beings are naturally oriented towards possibility, while the statement that “genius creates” presents originality as the defining quality of exceptional thought. Hope anticipates what might come; creation gives new possibilities a concrete form.
Within The American Scholar, the passage supports Emerson’s argument that scholars should not merely imitate established authorities or inherited traditions. They should use knowledge of the past as material for independent thought and new work. His description of creation as evidence of a “divine presence” reflects the Transcendentalist belief that individual creative power participates in a larger spiritual reality. The passage therefore connects intellectual independence, creativity and forward movement, presenting original creation as an important expression of human capacity.