A New Colossus And Amphibians: Poem Analysis
America, a country in which John F. Kennedy referred to as “a nation of immigrants”. The protagonist of our novel, Ashima, is an immigrant from India who experiences the abnormal, the strange, the uncomfortable feeling of being suddenly immersed in a new and completely foreign culture. Through out the chapter I made a connection to the 2 poems, A New Colossus and Amphibians. “metamorphose: gills in early stages. On land, amphibians develop lungs”. Legaspi. In this quote I found a connection to Ashima and her situation. The metaphor that Legaspi uses in his poem is interesting for I think that the environment is analogous to society in the way that the environment creates trials in which amphibians overcome through adaption the same way society
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This can be seen in the poem A New Colossus. “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!” Lazarus. This quote gives society the appearance or perhaps the facade of being open to all. While theoretically good, it is impossible for society always has an inescapable prejudices it holds against those who are different. Like the environment, society has no malicious intent, rather it is simply society’s nature. This can be seen througout the novel. “Judy eyes the buffet, bites into something that turns out to be a shrimp cutlet. "I thought Indians were supposed to be vegetarian," she whispers to Alan.” Lahiri 99. “She does not turn back to look at the shopping bag, left purposely beneath her seat. "Hey, the Indian lady forgot her stuff,” Lahiri 114. Through both of these quotes it can be observed how society can inadvertently alienate an individual. By that I mean the little seemingly harmless assumptions and comments that remind the subject that they are different. Similar to how Jahumpa Lahiri felt when clerks and salesman would speak to her rather than her parents for they believed the parents did not speak
This can be seen in the poem A New Colossus. “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!” Lazarus. This quote gives society the appearance or perhaps the facade of being open to all. While theoretically good, it is impossible for society always has an inescapable prejudices it holds against those who are different. Like the environment, society has no malicious intent, rather it is simply society’s nature. This can be seen througout the novel. “Judy eyes the buffet, bites into something that turns out to be a shrimp cutlet. "I thought Indians were supposed to be vegetarian," she whispers to Alan.” Lahiri 99. “She does not turn back to look at the shopping bag, left purposely beneath her seat. "Hey, the Indian lady forgot her stuff,” Lahiri 114. Through both of these quotes it can be observed how society can inadvertently alienate an individual. By that I mean the little seemingly harmless assumptions and comments that remind the subject that they are different. Similar to how Jahumpa Lahiri felt when clerks and salesman would speak to her rather than her parents for they believed the parents did not speak