The New Colossus

“The New Colossus” is a lyric poem, but it could also be described as an occasional poem: that which is written to commemorate a certain occasion or event. In this case, as the poem was written as part of the fund-raiser for the pedestal for the Statue of Liberty, one might contend the poem commemorates the arrival of the statue. However, as the poem had no part of any official ceremony at the opening of the statue, some readers would object to calling it an occasional poem.

Titling the poem “The New Colossus” prompts the reader to wonder about the old colossus. The poem describes the old colossus as “the brazen giant of Greek fame, / With conquering limbs astride from land to land” (Lines 1-2). This description is a reference to the Colossus of Rhodes, a mammoth bronze statue of the sun god Helios placed at the harbor of the Greek island of Rhodes in the 3rd century B.C.E. to commemorate a military victory. It was destroyed by an earthquake 54 years later, but for some time legend had it the statue stood across the harbor with its feet on opposite sides.