Emma Lazarus facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Emma Lazarus
Lazarus, c. 1872
Born	(1849-07-22)July 22, 1849 New York City, New York, U.S.
Died	November 19, 1887(1887-11-19) (aged 38) New York City
Resting place	Beth Olam Cemetery in Brooklyn, New York City
Occupation	Author, activist
Language	English
Genre	Poetry, prose, translations, novels, plays
Subject	Georgism
Notable works	"The New Colossus"
Notable awards	National Women's Hall of Fame
Relatives	Josephine Lazarus, Benjamin N. Cardozo
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Emma Lazarus (born July 22, 1849 – died November 19, 1887) was an American writer. She wrote beautiful poetry, prose, and also translated works from other languages. Emma was also an activist who worked to help Jewish people and supported ideas about fair land use.

She is most famous for her sonnet called "The New Colossus". This poem was inspired by the Statue of Liberty in 1883. Its powerful words are now carved onto a bronze plaque. This plaque was placed on the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty in 1903. Emma Lazarus deeply cared about refugees coming to New York. These refugees were often fleeing difficult times and attacks against Jewish people in eastern Europe. She found a way to express her sympathy for them through her poem about the statue.

The last lines of her sonnet were even turned into a song. Irving Berlin set them to music as "Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor" in 1949. This song was part of the musical Miss Liberty. Another composer, Lee Hoiby, also used parts of the sonnet in his 1985 song "The Lady of the Harbor".

Emma Lazarus also wrote other books. These include Poems and Translations (1867) and Admetus, and other Poems (1871). She wrote a novel called Alide: An Episode of Goethe's Life (1874). She also translated Poems and Ballads of Heine (1881). Her works also included Poems, 2 Vols., Narrative, Lyric and Dramatic, and Jewish Poems and Translations.

Her Early Life and Learning

Emma Lazarus was born in New York City on July 22, 1849. She grew up in a large Jewish family. Her father, Moses Lazarus, was a successful merchant. Her mother was Esther Nathan. Emma was the fourth of seven children.

Her family had a rich history. Some of her ancestors came from Portugal. They were among the first Jewish people to arrive in New Amsterdam (now New York) after seeking safety from difficult times in Brazil. Emma's great-great-grandmother, Grace Seixas Nathan, was also a poet. Emma was also related to Benjamin N. Cardozo, a famous judge.

Emma was taught at home by private tutors from a young age. She studied American and British literature. She also learned several languages, including German, French, and Italian. Emma loved poetry and started writing her own poems when she was just eleven years old.

Emma Lazarus: A Talented Writer

Emma's early writing was encouraged by events like the American Civil War. Her first collection, Poems and Translations, came out in 1867. She was only between fourteen and seventeen years old when she wrote these verses. Famous poet William Cullen Bryant praised her work. This collection included her translations of poems by Friedrich Schiller and Heinrich Heine.

Her next book, Admetus and Other Poems, was published in 1871. The main poem in this book was dedicated to her friend Ralph Waldo Emerson. Emerson's ideas greatly influenced Emma's own thinking and writing. Over the next ten years, her poems appeared in popular magazines.

Famous Poems and Stories

Emma Lazarus's writing became known in other countries too. Her first prose story, Alide: An Episode of Goethe's Life, was published in 1874. She also wrote a play called The Spagnoletto in 1876. In 1881, she published Poems and Ballads of Heinrich Heine. Her translations of Heine's poems are still considered some of the best in English.

She also wrote a sixteen-part poem called "Epochs". Emma edited many adaptations of German poems. She wrote a novel and two plays. One play, The Dance to Death, was about a sad historical event where Jewish people faced persecution in Nordhausen. During this time, Emma also wrote articles about famous writers and Jewish topics.

The Story Behind "The New Colossus"

The famous lines from her sonnet "The New Colossus" are on a bronze plaque. This plaque was placed inside the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty in 1903. Emma wrote this sonnet in 1883. She donated it to an auction to help raise money. The money was needed to build the pedestal for the Statue of Liberty. Emma's close friend, Rose Hawthorne Lathrop, was so inspired by "The New Colossus" that she later founded a religious order.

Emma traveled to Europe twice, once in 1883 and again from 1885 to 1887. During these trips, she met other famous writers. These included Henry James, Robert Browning, and William Morris. Her last book, Poems in Prose, was published in 1887. A collection of her Complete Poems was published after her death in 1888.

Standing Up for Others: Her Activism

Emma Lazarus was a friend and admirer of Henry George. He was an American thinker who had ideas about economics. Emma strongly believed in his ideas about fair land use and taxes. She became active in a movement that supported these reforms. She even published a poem in the New York Times named after George's book, Progress and Poverty.

Helping Immigrants in Need

Emma became more interested in her Jewish heritage after hearing about attacks and difficult times for Jewish people in Russia. These events followed the assassination of Tsar Alexander II in 1881. Because of this violence and poor living conditions, thousands of Jewish people left Russia. They came to New York seeking a better life.

Emma began to speak out and work on behalf of these Jewish immigrants. She helped create the Hebrew Technical Institute. This school in New York taught skills to Jewish immigrants. It helped them find jobs and become self-supporting. Emma also volunteered at the Hebrew Emigrant Aid Society. In 1883, she founded another group to help East European Jews.

Connecting with Her Jewish Heritage

Her renewed connection to her Jewish faith inspired many poems. These included "The Crowing of the Red Cock" and "The Banner of the Jew". She also wrote "The Dance to Death", a powerful play. Her last published work, "By the Waters of Babylon", came out in 1887.

During this time, Emma also translated works by medieval Hebrew poets. She wrote articles about Jewish topics for Jewish newspapers. She also wrote essays on subjects like "Bar Kochba" and "M. Renan and the Jews". Some of her translations are still used in American synagogues today.

Emma wrote a notable series of articles called "An Epistle to the Hebrews". In these articles, she discussed challenges faced by Jewish people. She encouraged Jewish education and believed in a homeland for Jewish people in Palestine. Some historians see her as an early supporter of this idea. Her collection Songs of a Semite (1882) was dedicated to the memory of George Eliot. It is considered one of the first volumes of Jewish American poetry.

Her Lasting Impact

Lazarus Public School in Brooklyn

Emma Lazarus became seriously ill after her second trip to Europe. She passed away two months later, on November 19, 1887, in New York City. She never married. Emma was buried in Beth Olam Cemetery in Cypress Hills, Brooklyn. After her death, The Poems of Emma Lazarus was published in 1889. This book included most of her poems. Her writings and letters are preserved in historical societies and universities.

Many groups and places have been named in her honor. The Emma Lazarus Federation of Jewish Women's Clubs was founded in 1951. In 1985, a stamp featuring the Statue of Liberty and her poem "The New Colossus" was issued. She was recognized as a Women's History Month Honoree in 1992. In 2009, Emma Lazarus was inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame. The Museum of Jewish Heritage also featured an exhibition about her in 2012. There is an Emma Lazarus Art and Music Venue and a park named after her in Pittsburgh.

Emma Lazarus helped shape how the United States sees itself. She also helped people understand the needs of immigrants. Her writings taught important lessons about treating immigrants with dignity and respect. She connected her personal experiences with the larger story of people seeking a new home.

Images for kids

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  Poems and ballads of Heinrich Heine

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  Alide: an episode of Goethe's life (1874)

See also

In Spanish: Emma Lazarus para niños