The Reality of the American Promise Poetry, in the cumulative sense, is an expository archive containing the sum of the human experience. Poetry, for example, helps us explore the most general and specific areas of humanity. Likewise, poetry can be used to investigate the depths of a particular feeling. Above all, poetry helps us understand the totality of a writer's expert contemplation on a given topic. Regarding the “American Dream” or the “American Promise,” Emma Lazarus and Langston Hughes express starkly different opinions about what America has to offer the less privileged. Comparing the backgrounds of both authors leads to an explanation of the different perceptions of reality found between "The New Colossus" and "Let America be America Again." A thorough analysis of the poems themselves will tell us what exactly the authors are saying. To some extent, this information is helpful when it relates to the struggles and difficulties that immigrants like Enrique face when trying to come to America. It is also useful for forming a general opinion about modern America. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Emma Lazarus and Langston Hughes grew up on opposite ends of the socioeconomic spectrum. The two lived very different lives. . Emma Lazarus was of European descent. Langston Hughes was an African American. . Lazarus was born into a rich family. Hughes was poor, and being black didn't help his situation in a time of racial segregation. Hughes' father published her first set of poems for her; a considerable expense for the time. It makes sense that Emma Lazarus saw America in such a positive light compared to Langston Hughes. His worldview was much more protected and protected due to the amount of money he had. This is a safe assumption to make. Lazarus was never immersed in the culture she was speaking to. Hughes, on the other hand, was born into a life of poverty. He stood shoulder to shoulder with the poor and disadvantaged whom both he and Lazarus catered to. In his poem “Let America be America Again,” he addressed his own people. Hughes' perspective on life in America is quite negative compared to Lazarus's. When defining reality, experience is much more accurate than observation. Therefore, Hughes' perspective is different from Lazarus' because it is much more accurate. Poetry is a complicated form of expression. It employs devices such as metaphor, symbol, repetition, allusion, sound, rhythm, imagery, connotation, and irony. Using these devices, poets can create multiple dimensions of meaning behind each word. Due to the complexity caused by the multi-layered meaning, the poem is open to misinterpretation. This is why detailed analysis is vital for a correct interpretation of both poems. In “Let America be America Again,” Hughes immediately introduces the fact that he believes America is not all it can be. This is due to the use of the word "again" in the title. Hughes wants America to be "the dream it once was" (2). He wants America to keep its promise: to grant him equality, freedom and opportunity for the pursuit of happiness. Even though Hughes believes that America at some point fulfilled its promises, he says, “To me America was never America” (5). Hughes never experienced the fulfillment of the American promise. Obviously there is an imbalance in the distribution of resources, which is why Hughes never got his promised share. Using phrases such as "tyrants' plan," "kings connive," and "man is crushed by him above" (8-9), Hughes istrying to tell the reader that the people inside. those in power are the ones who live happily, but at the same time deprive everyone else of opportunities. However, there is no single large group of poor people. Hughes recognizes that there are different subgroups of disadvantaged people, and they all suffer for specific reasons. For example, the “Negro who bears the scars of slavery” (20) points towards African Americans who were considered less than human and who to this day are profiled and discriminated against. This is because they were enslaved during a time in America. Native Americans are another good example: Hughes addresses their struggle by saying that the "red man" was "driven from the land" (21). Anyone who has taken an American history course knows the number of Native Americans left; about a tenth of the population. The immigrants who came to America didn't just sit back and complain about not having the opportunity to fulfill the American Promise. They worked hard in an effort to improve their livelihood. Hughes, for example, addresses farmers as “servants of the land” (32). Likewise, he refers to the factory worker as “sold to the machine” (33). Aside from the “nigger” (34) who was once a slave himself, Hughes insinuates that the lower classes worked so hard, it was as if they were slaves to their specific professions. Despite their hard work, these people were still “starved” and “beaten” (Hughes 36-37). The poor and disadvantaged working class was battered and bruised from years of hard work, yet still hungry for a better life; A life that would literally put more food on the table. Hughes was unhappy with the current reality of American life for the lower classes. However, this did not stop him from dreaming of an ideal America. For Hughes, an ideal America was a place that is "the dream dreamed by dreamers" (6) . It was a place where “opportunity was real” (Hughes 13), so that immigrants could achieve their dreams. It was also a place where there was so much equality that you could smell it “in the air we breathe” (Hughes 14). For much of “Let America be America Again,” Hughes just hopes that these ideas will become reality. However, near the end of the poem, he vows to his audience as a final plea that “America will be” (Hughes 78). He assures his audience that one day they will have an opportunity and the fulfillment of the American promise. “Let America Be America Again” is a much longer poem than “The New Colossus.” This is because there is a greater amount of recognizable detail that can be referenced when dealing with reality than when promoting ideals. In “The New Colossus” Emma Lazarus paints a very optimistic picture of America. To an immigrant reading the poem, America would seem like an ideal place to start a new and better life. Lazarus begins his poem by establishing the stark difference between the Colossus of Rhodes – one of the seven wonders of the ancient world and “The New Colossus” which will replace it as a symbol of human achievement and endeavor. For Lazarus, the ancient statue is masculine, "brash"(1) and severe, symbolizing the often oppressive nature of ancient Greco-Roman patriarchies, in contrast, the Statue of Liberty is a "powerful woman" wielding a torch "whose flame / Is the imprisoned lightning" ( Lazarus 4-5). This statement equates her to the Greek gods who were also capable of commanding enlightenment such as Zeus and Thor. Lazarus calls Lady Liberty "the mother of exiles" (6); a protective and nurturing figure. Lady Liberty condemns the selfish ways of old-world societies, in which the rich are far more concerned with their reputations ("legendary pageantry") (Lazarus 9) than with caring for the needs of the populace. The Statue of Liberty is a symbol for