THE STATUE OF LIBERTY: MEANING OF THE STATUE OF LIBERTY The statue of Liberty is national monument given to the United States by France in recognition of the friendship established during the American Revolution. Being among the best-known monuments in the world, it attracts between three to four million people each year. The Statue of Liberty has been a tourist destination and played many other roles in its 124-year history. Representing a woman holding aloft a torch, it stands at the entrance to New York harbor on a 12-acre land known as Bedloe’s or Liberty Island. The Statue of Liberty symbolizes freedom throughout the world, democracy as well as international friendship. As a result, many immigrants’ hearts warmed up as they …show more content…
The French people responded immediately by raising money through public funding and various forms of entertainment. However, the law of France only permitted lotteries for charitable and artistic causes, of which the Statue of Liberty qualified under both. Consequently, it was decided that a lottery be organized to boost the fund. Gounod, a famous composer wrote a song to the statue that he presented at the Paris Opera, and the money raised funded the project. Unfortunately, they realized that the anticipated cost of building the Statue was much more than the available funds. Never the less, the French government was not involved in any fund raising. On the other hand, the Americans received the information about the statue construction before they got appeal for funds. The reluctance on the American side delayed the building of the pedestal. Possible reasons for lack of interest were that the project may not be completed, others though the statue was a New York City project and not national in character. Others argued about its location. The only accomplishment made by 1876 was the exhibition of the completed right arm and torch of the statue at Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia and later Madison Square in New York City. While all this was going on, the French completed the head and shoulders of the statue and placed them on public exhibition to encourage
A statue constructed in the name of liberty arose from the expansive Atlantic more than a century ago. The values of equality and justice coupled with the promises of freedom remain immoveable like the cooper medium and the stone foundation of which the statue arises. An icon ingrained it the spirit of the United States, the Statue of Liberty is the physical representation of American ideals. It is the “light of liberty” that illuminates the path for the “tired,” and the “poor,” seeking shelter from the shadows of tyranny and persecution. The statue has been symbol of hope in a better future and a new beginning to immigrants seeking a fresh start. Ideals, along with the symbols that represent them, however are merely man made. And like the
In 1865 when the American Civil War was close to the end, a French historian Edouard de Laboulaye suggested that France should create and give to the United States a statue that would symbolize the nation’s success in building a viable democracy. However, because of the lock of money, the work on the statue didn’t start until the end of 1875. The creator of the statue is the French sculptor Frederic-Auguste Bartholdi who created the statue out of sheets of hammered copper and Alexandre-Gustave Eiffel, the creator of Eiffel Tower created the statue’s steel frame. The female form represented by the sculpture is based on Libertas, the Roman goddess of liberty. The statue was given to the United States and was
Many don't know the importance of the New York Statue of Liberty. It represents the Promise of America for those who enter America for a new life. The promise of america is opening opportunities for newcomers that are willing to start a new beginning and having peace.
The United States of America is known for its diversity in ethnicity and culture. It was created by the surge of immigration which began at the point when the new world was first discovered, to its peak when the United States was a new country. This surge was driven by the promise of a new beginning, and for the hope that things could become better. The Statue of Liberty became known as the mother of exiles as it became a symbolic representation of the promise of America. The statue gave new arrivals the hope that things would get better, the promise for a fresh start and a better life. The hope, the new beginning, and the ideas the Statue of Liberty represented is the definition of the promise of America.
In the story “The New Colossus” it talks about the Europeans wanting to come to America and pursue the American dream. They had the belief that the Statue of Liberty, in this story she is called The Mother Of Exiles, is asking the countries to “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free.” The Statue of Liberty was a gift from France to the United States, she was the golden door to America, offering refugee to those who were seeking freedom.
The horse appeared perfectly balanced on his hind legs and was very lifelike. It was agreed that he would be paid $12,000 to execute the statue and the bronze would be provided. It took 2 years to make the plaster cast and a lot of trial and error. A statue of this size of bronze had not been attempted in the United States to that date. The bronze was from cannons which were captured by Andrew Jackson during the second war with England. The statue was dedicated in January 8, 1853 and placed in LaFayette Square in Washington, D.C. It is still there, directly across from the White House. Congress was so pleased with the delightfully original statue that they added $20,000 to the fee which had already been paid. With the mold already made, Mills was commissioned to make the same statue to be placed in New Orleans in 1856. A third replica was ordered for Nashville, Tennessee and dedicated in 1880.
The symbol of the Statue of Liberty clearly represents the idea of immigration. According to the Collins Dictionary, the definition of immigration is, “The movement of non-native people into a country in order to settle there.”
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.
Being an American means defining freedom through your actions. Whether its fighting for your country, working your hands to the bone, etc. But you make your own freedom by earning your keep. Also in America freedom is also defined on how you help this country succeed, a big part of Americas success is that immigrants from neighboring countries were allowed to migrate in the hope for better living conditions and jobs. They left all they had for a better opportunity to live and no matter what their background, they were welcome in America.
Not like the Colussus of Rhodes, the statue of liberty is a welcome to America, rather than conquering limbs astride from land to land. Emma Lazarus The New Colossus 1883
Andrew Jackson a hero in, The Battle of New Orleans had this statue created in his honor.
The Statue of Liberty was created on October 28th of 1886 and currently stands in Liberty Island in New York. The statues torch is made of gold, the internal framework is composed of steel and wrought iron, and the external body is composed of copper. The outside portion is composed of copper that has naturally oxidized over time and has gained its signature green color. The Statue of Liberty is relatively large standing at over three hundred feet tall from base to the tip of the the torch.
America is commonly called the “Land of the Free”, but the abundance of liberties, and liberties for all, has not always been the case. The Puritans were some of the first to settle in the New World, but they were self-interested and did not come with the purpose of creating a free state for all. As time progressed, so did their believes, and by the time Tocqueville arrived from France, liberty was an important aspect of American life. So important that people would fight and die for it. Tocqueville, while impressed at the amount liberty and freedoms that citizens had, believed that America had a long way to go before it could call itself a truly free country. Fast forward over a hundred years later, and John Rawls lived in a time were the
The statue would have died if not for the valiant efforts of Joseph Pulitzer, who through his magazine, the World, helped raise the much needed funds for the pedestal. Though the French had graciously granted us the statue free of charge, the Americans still had to pay for the pedestal upon which the statue was to rest. He stated that the statue was to be a symbol of unity, freedom, and the ideals that so many of them had fought for to acquire their very own independence. Pulitzer?s campaign of criticism was just what the statue needed. His actions helped to raise funds from the rich and the middle class. In a couple of years, the US had enough money to form the pedestal.
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.