Emma Lazarus, a great poet

Statue of Liberty, a historic monument in the USA. As one goes within the pedestal of this monument there are words engraved on a tablet. These words had an impact on the country of America. These are the words of a young and beautiful poet called Emma Lazarus.

            Emma Lazarus’ story begins happily enough. Born on July 22^nd, 1849 she was the fourth amongst her seven siblings. She was born in an affluent family and was home schooled by tutors who taught her music, poetry, literature and foreign languages. She was the most creative of all her siblings and used to write poetry from a very young age. By the time she was 17 she had written and translated several poems. These poems were published under the name of ‘Poems and translations: written between the ages of fourteen and sixteen’. These poems caught attention of a great essayist and poet Ralph Waldo Emerson. Emerson remained Emma Lazarus’ mentor for the rest of her life. Her works have been of great importance and after a few years she became sensitive to the problem of the Jews. She fought and argued for the rights of the immigrating Jews and was also a supporter of Zionist movement before it was even launched. Emma Lazarus remained unmarried for the rest of her life and no one knows the reason why? Nothing much about Lazarus’ personal life is known to people but in many biographies people have tried to make assumptions and suggestions about her personal life (but according to me these are just suggestions not fact).

Emma Lazarus had written many poems, essays, a couple of novels and plays. Her poems like ‘the new colossus’, ‘heroes’ 'dreams', and the poetry collection ‘song of the Semite’ are famous. Lazarus dedicated her life to poetry and the welfare of her people through it. She was amongst the first female poets to be recognized as an American writer. Emma Lazarus died at the young age of 38 with the cause apparently to be thought as cancer. On November 19, 1887 she bade good bye to the world. Her death was mourned in the Jew community as well as in the country of America.