Emma Lazarus 'The New Colossus' Immigrants

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In “The New Colossus” by Emma Lazarus, America is portrayed as the “golden door” for immigrants of all nations. Lazarus depicts the Statue of Liberty as the “Mother of Exiles” and who welcomes each immigrant into her land to start a new life. The two poems “Let America Be America” and “Immigrants,” exemplify the idea of freedom and opportunity in America, but also illustrate drawbacks in obtaining the dream. Immigrants take great risks in packing up their belongings and moving their families to a brand new country. They are not only moving, but they are also accepting new customs to try and establish an improved life. Pat Mora’s poem “Immigrants” displays immigrant couples who are trying to start a family the American way. The immigrant couples want to keep their heritage in their baby’s life, but thye also want to be accepted. They have this idea that they should name their children “Bill and Daisy” or buy them a football with “tiny cleats before the baby can even walk”. (ll 4,6,7) All the while, they will try to obtain approval in the United States so that they can prosper and display that they are accepting of new customs.…show more content…
He is not experiencing the promised freedom and opportunity, but encourages us as Americans to “take back our land.” (ll. 73) He begins his poem by putting forth the negatives of his experience in this supposed land of the free. Hughes includes references in his poem to Negroes, Indians, and poor people who are not obtaining their freedom in this country. However, he goes on to say that he is a “young man, full of strength and hope.” (ll. 25) This brings the reader to the hopeful side of Hughes’ poem where he inspires us as Americans to stand up for our freedom to “make America again.” (ll. 86) Even though their preconceived idea of how things should be did not always live up to what they thought, Hughes demonstrates how to be hopeful in these

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