The New Colossus

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"The New Colossus" is a sonnet by Emma Lazarus (1849-1887), written in 1883, and, in 1903, engraved on a bronze plaque and mounted inside the Statue of Liberty.

Author John T. Cunningham wrote that "The Statue of Liberty was not conceived and sculpted as a symbol of immigration, but it quickly became so as immigrant ships passed under [the statue]. However, it was [Lazarus' poem] that permanently stamped on Miss Liberty the role of unofficial greeter of incoming immigrants." pp. 46-7 James Russell Lowell wrote that the poem gave the Statue of Liberty "a raison d'etre"op. cit. and Paul Auster wrote that "Bartholdi's gigantic effigy was originally intended as a monument to the principles of international republicanism, but 'The New Colossus' reinvented the statue's purpose, turning Liberty into a welcoming mother, a symbol of hope to the outcasts and downtrodden of the world."p. 508, in an essay about New York City as a living embodiment of the idea of diversity.

The poem was written as a donation to an auction of art and literary works p. 77: "auction of art and art and literary work;" Mark Twain also contributed. conducted by the "Art Loan Fund Exhibition in Aid of the Bartholdi Pedestal Fund for the Statue of Liberty," the aim of which was to raise money for the pedestal's construction. p. 3: Auction event named as ""Art Loan Fund Exhibition in Aid of the Bartholdi Pedestal Fund for the Statue of Liberty;" Lowell says poem gave the statue "a raison e'tre;" fell into obscurity; not mentioned at statue opening; Georgina Schuyler's campaign for the plaque. contribution was solicited by fundraiser William Maxwell Evarts. Initially Lazarus refused, but Constance Cary Harrison convinced her that the statue would be of great significance to immigrants sailing into the harbor. p. 45: Solicited by "William Maxwell Evert"[sic; presumably a misspelling of "William Maxwell Evarts] Lazarus refused initially; convinced by Constancy Cary Harrison.

"The New Colossus" was the only entry read at the exhibit's opening, but was forgotten and played no role at the opening of the statue in 1886. In 1901, Lazarus' friend Georgina Schuyler began an effort to memorialize Lazarus and her poem, and succeeded in 1903, when a plaque bearing the text of the poem was mounted on the inner wall of the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty.op. cit.

The title of the poem, and the first two lines, refer to the Colossus of Rhodes, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. The poem talks about the millions of immigrants who came to the United States (many of them through Ellis Island at the port of New York), and the identity of the United States as a declared immigrant nation.

The plaque at the Statue of Liberty

''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!"

External links

• [The sonnet in Emma Lazarus' own handwriting] from [A Century of Immigration, 1820-1924] (Library of Congress website)

References

• [Text of "The New Colossus" from Liberty State Park]