The New Colossus By Jane Addams Essay - 1364 Words

Immigration to America is often a decision based solely on the idea that America has some sort of redeeming qualities for a chance at a better life. America’s founding ideals of â€Å"life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness† are what compel foreigners to escape the troubles and oppression of their homeland and cross over onto American soil. The tales of America being the â€Å"land of opportunity† have continued to lure and attract people to immigrate. The Industrial Revolution of the nineteenth century brought millions of immigrant laborers from across the globe to America in a short span of time. This large influx of laborers fashioned a well-defined distinction between â€Å"settlers† and â€Å"immigrants,† causing many observers to be concerned with how these new arrivals would fit in to American society. Emma Lazarus in â€Å"The New Colossus†, Jane Addams in Twenty Years at Hull House, Walt Whitman in â€Å"Crossing the Brooklyn Fe rry†, Theodore Roosevelt in American Ideals, and Thomas Aldrich in â€Å"Unguarded Gates† are just a few names in American Literature who use their work as a medium to voice their opinions on the issue of immigration. Emma Lazarus’s poem, â€Å"The New Colossus†, has become the fundamental expression of America’s self-image as a welcoming and hospitable nation of immigrants. Through her poem, Lazarus transformed the Statue of Liberty—built by the French to commemorate shared American ideals of democracy—into an inspiration of hope for foreigners seeking a better life in theShow MoreRelatedMelting Pot6314 Words   |  26 Pagesin American cultural and political ideology? These are some of the questions considered in the following discussion. The Statue of Liberty is by now a universally recognized symbol of American political mythology. She stands at the entrance of New York harbor, wearing a spiked crown representing the light of liberty shining on the seven seas and the seven continents. The statue was a gift to the United States from the people of France in 1884. It is made of riveted copper sheets, only 3/32 of