Immigration literature project - The New Colossus

• Engels
• Middelbare school
• havo
• Leerjaar 4

The New Colossus

Immigration literature project

Poetry I

Which famous American landmark is the subject of this poem?

1. Mount Rushmore
2. Statue of Liberty
3. Empire State Building
4. Golden Gate Bridge

About the writer

- Written by American Jewish poet Emma Lazarus

- Immigration activist

- Written in 1883 to help raise money for the Statue of Liberty's pedestal

- Mounted to the pedestal in 1903

Colossus of Rhodes

Statue of Liberty

Male

Female

New York City

Ancient Greece

Military victory

Gift from France

Protector of visitors

Warning to visitors

Sonnet

- 14 lines

- Two parts: octave and sestet

- Shift between the first and second part

What is the first part of the poem about?

First part of poem: 

• describing the statue of liberty
  
• comparison to old Greek statue: the colossus of Rhodes
  
• contrasting the Greek statue (symbol of power and empire) to the statue of Liberty (symbol of maternal strength)
  

What is the second part of the poem about?

Second part of poem:

 the statue welcoming immigrants

What is the shift between the two parts? What changes in the poem?

It shifts from describing the statue, to the welcoming of refugees.

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