The New Colossus

The New Colossus

By Emma Lazarus 1849–1887 

Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,

With conquering limbs astride from land to land;

Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand

A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame

Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name

Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand

Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command

The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.

“Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!” cries she

With silent lips. “Give me your tired, your poor,

Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,

The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.

Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,

I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”

 

        The New Colossus gives a multitude of emotions to those who lived through the time period and for those that live now to comprehend its meaning. It was written in a time period where there was little hope and a multitude of problems. Millions of immigrants poured in the U.S. and they were mostly poor and hopeless. They were discriminated, hated, and persecuted in their old countries. They seeked shelter here and got a somewhat better life.

        This poem is about immigration and the Statue of Liberty. Most immigrants that come through New York Harbor see the statue of Liberty. It shows a symbol of hope and prosperity to the immigrants that travel through to Ellis Island. In the poem it compares the Statue to Greek and Roman Statues. They were all crafted in the form of a man that usually held a weapon in strength. The Statue of Liberty is a woman that hold a torch of hope towards the sky. She wants to show the difference between might war-like golems to a peaceful beacon of hope. Such a big difference.

        In conclusion, the new colossus really wants to represent America as a place as hope. She wants the poor and those that need help. She compares the Statue of Liberty to the Colossus of Rhodes. They are two very different things that represent many different ideas. This poem was to give freedom to those who need it.