In the early 20th century America experienced a sharp rise in immigration. Most of the immigrants were from Southern and Eastern Europe, which intimidated Americans due to the conflict they were having with Germany. Americans were understandably suspicious of these new arrivals. In the novel The Long Way Home, David Laskin details the journey of 12 European immigrants “from immigrant to soldier to citizen” (xxiii). I will examine the journey of Michele Valente, an Italian man born in the village of Sant’ Apollinare in 1895. Laskin throughout his novel is set to prove that immigrants during this period quickly became Americanized by fighting in the Great War. Michael Valente would go on to become the only Italian-American to win …show more content…
They all endure the sea voyage to Ellis Island and then to their final place of residence. There, they continued to rely on assistance from their extended and distant family to help them achieve a life in America. The majority of the immigrants back in Italy were farmers and general laborers. Alexandra Molnar states, “Italians were the largest immigrant population to work in the mines.” Italian immigrants received a lot of prejudice especially since English was not their first language. However, the ones that were educated and skilled were still positioned to do jobs of laborers and miners instead of a more appropriate job that matched their qualities. Surprisingly, employees preferred to hire Poles and Slovaks instead of Italians. Immigrants were encouraged to leave their native country to look for a better life in the United States. According to Molnar, Italians viewed the United States “as a nation with abundant land, high wages, lower taxes, and interestingly enough, no military draft. An additional irony is that several had left their native country to avoid having to go into the military, however, most of the Italian immigrants would find themselves enlisting in the United States military when the country entered World War I, similar to
The novel Bread Givers by Anzia Yezierska examines the roles and experiences of Jewish immigrants in America roughly after the years of WWI in New York City. The novel follows the journey of Sara, a young Jewish immigrant, and her family who comes to the country from Poland with different beliefs than those in the Smolinsky household and by much of the Jewish community that lived within the housing neighborhoods in the early 1900s. Through Sara’s passion for education, desire for freedom and appreciation for her culture, she embodies a personal meaning of it means to be an “American”.
Mark Wyman, the author of the brief essay known as Coming and Going: Round-Trip to America, had a different perspective about immigration to America from the various counties during the 1880’s through the 1930’s. A common belief, regarding the immigration to America, held that immigrates stayed in America during the massive shift of population, due to the enormous creation of factories and cities that erupted in America. The past day literature entices readers to believe that all immigrates came to America to work and eventually settled down to create their own families. It’s taught that all of these families stayed in America for their entire life span. Although despite the common belief, Wyman held to his own thoughts on the controversial debate and pioneered a new way of thinking. He believed that countless immigrates, which came from all over the world, actually only
When the Italian immigrants came to America for work they were desperate. They had already come for jobs, they were determined and hardworking. They would take the lowest class jobs wherever they could. City projects like building subway systems, and digging pipelines were not uncommon among the immigrants. Even children at young ages, would take jobs in factories, or even selling newspapers on the streets. Their work ethic and determination was unwavering. They opened the doors for future generations of immigrants. Although, they still had a long way to
Rosales, F. Arturo. Lecture 2/14 Film The US-Mexican War Prelude. Weber, David J. - "The 'Path of the World'" Foreigners in Their Native Land: The Historical Roots of Mexican Americans.
“Columbia’s Unwelcome Guests”, by Frank Beard (February 7, 1885), displays how the unrestricted US policies that were implemented were causing more immigrants to emigrate from Europe. The new aliens are depicted as anarchist, socialist, and the Mafia arriving from the sewers of Italy, Russia, and Germany. In the late nineteenth century, the U.S. government was not only concerned with the racialization of the immigrants entering the country, but also
Moving from the unpleasant life in the old country to America is a glorious moment for an immigrant family that is highlighted and told by many personal accounts over the course of history. Many people write about the long boat ride, seeing The Statue of Liberty and the “golden” lined streets of New York City and how it brought them hope and comfort that they too could be successful in American and make it their home. Few authors tend to highlight the social and political developments that they encountered in the new world and how it affected people’s identity and the community that they lived in. Authors from the literature that we read in class highlight these developments in the world around them, more particularly the struggles of assimilating
...they will not settle for less. Time is wasting. For, “Time which brings us from the lowest condition up to the highest civilization; time, so that we can raise men to a higher plane” (Reading 10, p. 2). Gompers has greater aims, for he wants to better America to keep advancing and creating. Of all of America, Chicago was the fastest growing city because of its railroad factory, which needed unskilled laborers like Italian immigrants. “The production of steel defined industrial Chicago” (Slideshow 7: Italian Immigrants in Chicago). If Italian immigrants were not in New York City, they were in Chicago. Wherever they lived they were experiencing horrifying working environments. In order to understand why these changes in conditions were so necessary between, it is essential to analyze the experiences of pre and post 1880 immigrants, especially that of the Italians.
Between 1880 and 1920 almost twenty-four million immigrants came to the United States. Between better salaries, religious freedom, and a chance to get ahead in life, were more than enough reasons for leaving their homelands for America. Because of poverty, no future and various discrimination in their homelands, the incentive to leave was increasing. During the mid-1800's and early 1900's, the labor and farm hands in Eastern Europe were only earning about 15 to 30 a day. In America, they earned 50 cents to one dollat in a day, doubling their paycheck. Those lower wage earners in their homeland were st...
The political machine was supported by continuing immigration from 1800 to 1920, when more than eighteen million European immigrants flooded into the Untied States in search of economic opportunity and political and religious freedom. At first they came from Northern and Central Europe and then largely from Eastern and Southern Europe. (New Colossus , Pg. 1) New York alone reported that by June 30, 1899 immigrant arrivals from the Russian Empire were around 90,787. Arrivals, from the same year, from all countries of persons of German race were 29,682 and Hebrew arrivals were 60,764. (Changing the Character of Immigration, Pg. 1) Unfortunately, with such a large influx in population during a short amount of time and other variables such as immigrants being unable to speak English, inadequate affordable urban housing, and insufficient jobs a large amount of immigrants ended up in growing slums without the feeling of security or knowledge of how to find help, if there was any, from an unrepresentative government. These factors transformed incoming immigrants into easy prey for patronage from the political machine and sustained it by giving their votes. In the 1930’s mass immigration had stopped and representative government had begun, leading to a decline in patronage needed by then integrated immigrants and a decline in votes for the machine.
“Chi la dura la vince.” This soft-spoken Italian proverb sums up the series of events that Italian immigrants endured on their journey in America. Between 1880 and 1920, more than four million Italian-Americans immigrated to the United States of America in hopes of temporarily escaping Southern Italy’s impoverished and overpopulated society. Once in America, these new Italian-American citizens started ‘Little Italys’ or ethnic enclaves of Italians. Some Little Italies were even large enough to support a full economic structure of their own, providing a plethora of job opportunities. These ‘small’ Italian communities shielded themselves from general stereotypes and provided a sense of belonging which helped Italians establish their roots. America’s attitude toward these new Italian-American citizens can be summed up in part by Congressman James McClintic, a Democrat Oklahoman: "I say the class of immigrants [Italians] coming to the shores of the United States at this time are not the kind of people we want as citizens in this country." Inplace of responding by aggressive human nature, America’s new Italian citizens viewed this as an opportunity to enrich family and community bonds. As for Italian traditions, they struggled to be accustomed between the two Italian generations as the already ‘Americanized’ Italian children clashed with their parents, which resulted in altered traditions. One major example is Italian-American food which chain restaurants have come to paint as a type of restaurant that specializes in spaghetti with meatballs, pizza, and has red checked tablecloths.
Portes, Alejandro, and Ruben G. Rumbaut. Immigrant America: A Portrait. N.p.: University of California Press, 2006.
Kessner, Thomas and Betty Boyd Caroli, “Today’s Immigrants, Their Stories.” Kiniry and Rose 343-346. Print.
Although today’s America in many ways has changed into a new society. Immigrants desire to move to America because they have freedom of religion, a chance to rise from poverty, and a new beginning. According to Michel-Guillaume Jean de Crevecoeur in from Letters from an American Farmer, ‘’ A country that had no bread for him, whose fields produced him no harvest, who met with nothing but the frowns of the rich, the severity of the laws, with jails and punishments; who owned not a single foot of the extensive surface of this planet? No! Urged by a variety of motives, here they came (148). Immigrants have a need to move to America to have a better future. As immigrants look on America they see that it’s a way out of getting a new life.
My life in early 19th century was very dreadful and scary. I was from a poor family where father goes to work in factories for 12-18 hours a day. I was from Germany. Jews was the most segregated religion in Germany. We did not have full right to do a certain things such as go to certain college to get education, shoe our religion freely to other and enjoy our festival. My father used to get a low wages in work and we have to live with the things we have we have no right to argue back for wages or anything. At that time pneumonia,tuberculosis and influenza were very common dieses. If anybody get sick in family we did not have much money to cure or buy medicine. There was a struggle going on with farmer because industrialist have started making the crops and grains in cheap mony and sell which make the life of farmer hard to live. We also have a little land where we use to farm and live since there is not profit in selling grains than my father start working in factories. My mother used to stay home and prepare food for us. Christian people were persecuting many of my relative and jews...
Until the 1860s, the early immigrants not only wanted to come to America, but they also meticulously planned to come. These immigrants known as the “Old Immigrants” immigrated to America from many countries in Northern and Western Europe, known as, Sweden, Norway, Scandinavia, Wales and Ireland. Some of them traveled to Canada, but most of them came to the U.S. seeking freedom they didn’t get in their own countries. Ireland had also recently suffered through a potato famine, where the citizens were left poor and starving. Most settled in New York City and other large cities, where they worked in factories and other low-paying jobs. The immigrants caused a great increase in population in these areas. The “Old Immigrants” tried not to cluster themselves with others of their own nationality. They would mostly try to fit in with Americans as best as they could. Many of them had a plan to come to America, so they saved their money and resources before they arrived so they could have a chance at a better life. On the other hand, another group of immigrants began to arrive