Libertas Essay

The Statue of Liberty in New York harbor, a destination for many of the early American immigrants, reads an inscription, ?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!" (National Park Service, 2016). This excerpt from a poem by Emma Lazarus encompasses the American spirit that led to the American Revolution and separation from England. America was a country comprised of immigrants who came to the New World to make a home of peace, safety and, as the statue stands, liberty.

One example that shows how the Statue of Liberty represents the idea of immigration is when Emma Lazarus writes about what she thinks the Statue of Liberty’s message stands for. According to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island Foundation, in 1876, a sculptor named Frederic Auguste Bartholdi was assigned to design the Statue of Liberty. Because the Statue of Liberty was a gift from France, the United States agreed to build a pedestal for the statue, but since there was a financial lack in both countries, the United States held an art and literary auction to raise funds for the Statue of Liberty’s pedestal. In 1883, Emma Lazarus was asked to create a poem to raise funds for the statue’s pedestal which would be placed in New York. Emma Lazarus says in The New Colossus, “Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name/ Mother of Exiles….‘Give me your tired, your poor/ your huddled masses yearning to breathe free/ the wretched refuse of your teeming shore/’” (Lazarus 5-12). When Lazarus says, “Mother of Exiles” she represents that the Statue of Liberty is a symbol of immigration because the statue is the woman who is well known for taking people that have been kicked out of the country they were living in. When Lazarus says these strong key words, “huddled masses yearning to

Emma Lazarus’s poem, “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 the

The symbol of freedom and hope was given by the French to the people of the United States in 1886 honoring friendship for

American Jewish poet, Emma Lazarus, wrote the sonnet entitled “The New Colossus” which, today is engraved on a bronze plaque and mounted inside the Statue of Liberty. The message portrayed by Lazarus’s poem is to the millions of immigrants who came to the United States (most through Ellis Island at the port of New York). Although the initial creation of the Statue of Liberty was not one to symbolize immigration, with the help of Lazarus's poem, Miss Liberty became the unofficial

The statue of liberty is a symbolic monument to all Americans, but to foreigners, she means something different. As portrayed in “The New Colossus”, the Lady Liberty gives immigrants from Europe a welcoming gesture. In the excerpt, the Statue of Liberty seems to be talking to the European countries, urging them to keep their wealthy natives, and for the people who are tired and poor to come to America. “ ”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 Mother of Exiles, as the author, Emma Lazarus describes, paints the picture of the American dream as a place that offers endless opportunity to those willing to work hard.

Selective immigration is necessary for a healthy balance in the United States. On October 28, 1886, the people of France gave a gift to the United States to commemorate the lasting friendship between the two countries. The Statue of Liberty, also known as Lady Liberty, is a 151-foot statue of a woman holding a book and torch. Lady Liberty symbolizes democracy and freedom from tyranny and oppression. Located in the Port of New York and New Jersey, the Statue of Liberty built by Gustave Eiffel to fabricate the symbol of freedom. Standing at the entrance of the harbor, Lady Liberty welcomes arriving immigrants before reaching the United States.

The Statue of Liberty is one of the most well know symbols of the United States, across the world. For this reason I chose to analyze the dramatic effect it creates, and what methods it implores to invent this "universal" meaning. It is one of the strongest visual representations of the ideals which our country is founded upon. I intend to defend the argument that the Statue of Liberty posses the power of persuading human thought using the terms encompassed in Kenneth Burke's Pentad, shaping the definition of "America" for people through out the world.

America has many bold symbols, like the bald eagle, a symbol of Courage, the American flag a symbol of the beginning and present of America. However, one of the most popular symbols in the United States is, the great lady herself, the Statue of Liberty. With her arms stretched wide she proclaims to the world, “Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.”

The Statue of Liberty was never built for immigrants. Initially, it was used to pay tribute to the United States of America and its newly founded democracy and friendship with France. Citizens did not think otherwise until Emma Lazarus first introduced the idea that it meant more. She communicated her opinions and emotions through a poem, “The New Colossus.” Although it was not instantly recognized, it eventually became the heart and soul of the New World. Consequently, it was so impactful and moving that it was written on a plaque at the base of the statue. Lazarus expresses the theme of welcoming immigrants to America with hope and freedom through the symbols of a torch and door.

The statue is recognized as a universal symbol of freedom and democracy. Brought to the United States as segments, the Statue of Liberty stands in the New York Harbor on Ellis Island. The idea for the statue was inspired by the works of Abraham Lincoln. The Statue has changed over time, physically and ideologically. Between 1886 and 1924, Lady Liberty became a symbol of hope and opportunity for a new life.

The Statue of Liberty, a symbol of freedom to many, is engraved with the famous poem, “New Colossus”, by Emma Lazarus. It reads, “… give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to be 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 Statue of Liberty supposedly represents the voice, the mind and the values of America as a whole, but she is partially an ironic misrepresentation because her overall meaning is the opposite of what is expressed.

“Sometimes this image [Lady Liberty] glossed over the very real drawbacks and difficulties of settling in the United States, but it was a romantic view that was dominant for decades and continues to persist” (The Immigrant’s Statue). So, not only does she represent the freedom our country represents but welcomes those into the United States who have come to receive those liberties.

     The perception of liberty has been an issue that has bewildered the human race for a long time. It seems with every aspiring leader comes a new definition of liberty, some more realistic than others. We have seen, though, that some tend to have a grasp of what true liberty is. One of these scholars was the English philosopher and economist J.S. Mill. Mill's On Liberty provided a great example of what, in his opinion, liberty is and how it is to be protected. In this essay we will examine Mill's ideals concerning liberty and point out a few things he may not have been realistic about.