Saturday, 20 April 2013
Prospective Immigrants Please Note
Read the following poem carefully, making sure you understand the complexity of the metaphor it presents.
Then use the COMMENTS function to write persuasively to an immigrant either FOR or AGAINST going through the 'door'.
Prospective Immigrants Please Note
by Adrienne Rich
Either you will
go through this door
or you will not go through.
If you go through
there is always the risk
of remembering your name.
Things look at you doubly
and you must look back
and let them happen.
If you do not go through
it is possible
to live worthily
to maintain your attitudes
to hold your position
to die bravely
but much will blind you,
much will evade you,
at what cost who knows?
The door itself makes no promises.
It is only a door.
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Dear immigrant,
ReplyDeleteWhy not go through? Who knows what wondrous paradise could wait for you beyond the door?
You could accomplish your dreams and sustain a well-paid job. You could meet people who would revolutionize your way of thinking and make you realise that you CAN make a difference.
Because if they put you down, you can put them down. You have rights, whether they say so or not. We are all equal, but in some eyes, we are not.
Please, dearest immigrant, don't let these eyes bring you down. Let them only fuel your fire of desire to succeed in life even more.
Yours hopefully,
The Void (Thomas Savage)
Dear immigrant,
ReplyDeleteReturning what Thomas said, I think you would have to be mad to go through. Who knows what will be waiting for you? There is risk-taker then there is crazy. There is a difference between the two. Of course, there is a chance you will accomplish your dreams and sustain a well-paid job. It is possible that you will engage with people who will revolutionise your way of thinking and make you realise that you can make a difference. You could come to a wondrous paradise. But it is more than likely you will not. You will step out, with great expectations, and you will realise you stepped too far and you will fall off. And chances are life is not going to be much better there than they are here. I would like to thank Thomas for helping me in my argument, as he said who knows what wondrous paradise is out there. The key bit in that is "who knows?" and he is right. Who knows? It could be horrible. You could be a victim of racism. You could starve on the streets, or get sucked into criminal activity. I'm afraid it won't be better there than it is here. The chances that you will be happy in that country are lower than 5%. Why would it be easier getting a job there than it is here? If anything, it might be worse. So be intelligent. Be wise. Be clever. No need to be limited, "I can't do anything here, so I may as well go out and give it a try over there". Stay and love. Be loyal to your community. Find a job here and be happy here. Because you can. You can be happy here. You just need to try.