Just
a side note: I wanted to say thank you for such a great novel
selection with Son of Italy. I enjoyed reading about Pascal's
experience and how closely I can relate to trying to remain
optimistic when all seems to be going wrong. One quote that
resonated with me the most was:
"I
had faith in myself. Without realizing it, I had learned the
greatest lesson of America: I had learned to have faith in the
future. No matter how bad things were, a turn would inevitably
come- as long as I did not give up. I was sure of it. But how
much I had to suffer until change came! What a thorny
heartbreaking road it was!"
COMMENT and REPLY to a comment:
This is what America does to immigrants: it leads people to learn to have faith in themselves. I wouldn't say "it teaches."
Is this the 'secret' of America's success?
Will it still be the case for the foreseeable future?
Will it still be the case for the foreseeable future?
Honestly, I couldn't tell you. I think each person has their own secret to success in America, their own way of making it to the "top". But I do think that it is one of the key aspects in immigrants to succeed. I think that this could be the case in the future but I'm not sure. There is so much happening right now with immigration that we can't know where to turn. But I believe that immigrants, as well as America, will push through this and come out stronger than ever.
ReplyDeleteImmigrants are very hard workers who do most of the labor jobs. They built our roads and country and are currently sill doing it. It is sad that they are constantly being discriminated against and specific groups take turns when it comes to discrimination. I do believe from the hardship it does get better.
DeleteI definitely believe that America teaches you. In a country that is a melting pot like ours, everyday is a learning experience. America teaches you how to live among all different cultures. The negative struggles we face are our greatest teacher. As an immigrant myself I can relate to the hardship of culture shock and being naive to many other cultures. Today I am proud of all my accomplishments and opportunities that came by way by simply going after the American dream. Also a lot of my success came from trial and error. I believe this will always be the case of American success. Everyone wants an opportunity to succeed. You are given the chance by immigrating to America. It will be hard at first but it will teach you things. The hardship you face is the stepping stone to success. The opportunity is there if you are willing to stay motivated.
ReplyDeleteI do agree that everyone wants a opportunity to succeed. Sometimes peoples hardship in their life makes them want to fight harder for that success and you must stay motivated.
DeleteI don't think anyone knows the secret to success in America. Some people are just lucky enough to stumble upon it. However, as far as immigrants, I will say they do have it harder than Americans. They must fight to get to status that us Americans were born with. I loved when he said he learned to have faith in the future. To have faith means someone has hope and he knew he would go far.
ReplyDeleteI agree with this heavily. The secret to success in America is hard to find unless you do something that goes viral which is the primary way for people to become famous. It is harder out there for immigrants unfortunately.
DeleteI totally agree with your comment. Immigrants definitely do have it harder than Americans. But if we all had faith, I think we could all get very far in life.
DeleteAt this point, I have absolutely no idea. America doesn't teaches others but it teaches the individual how to react and think for themselves based upon the terrible political climate that we're surrounded in. In this day, immigrants are treated so harshly with nothing with cruelty by both the force and the commander in chief's administration while this country was formed by immigrants who took over everything. Today it is difficult for immigrants to have faith in themselves as they live in this country but as long as us citizens fight for them, then hope will lie with them.
ReplyDeleteI agree, the current political climate does make it hard for new immigrants to have faith that they will be successful here in America and some who are already here may also begin to lose the ability to persist through the barriers that are becoming a new norm.
DeleteI will agree and say that Son of Italy was such a pleasant book to read. A lot had happened but it had one important thing which is not to give up. America is a powerful country with a lot of opportunists but only for people who are ready to fight for it. Every person has its own secret of success. However, one thing that everyone have in common is the ability to reach the dreams. It is the same for everyone, it only depends how hard the person is willing to work to reach the goal. I believe it becomes harder and harder for an immigrant each year. America is a few steps ahead of many countries. However, it became very difficult to immigrate here now. Relationship with other countries are becoming worse. And I can only assume but America won’t be great again.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your comment and we have similar views on the state that America is currently and it's attitude towards immigrants. The mentality of not giving up is important for anyone trying to make it anywhere.
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ReplyDeleteI would say that America teaches people to have faith in themselves because of the freedom that we are given and allowed unlike some other countries. There is a lot of opportunities here and continue to be a place for people to make a better life or escape from their lives back at home. I would like to hope that America continues to be the outlook that Pascal touches on in Son of Italy but unfortunately, the state of our country is not in the favor of immigrants at this point and is teaching more hatred than positivity towards other groups. Hopefully in the foreseeable future we get to a place where tolerance is more widely accepted all across the country.
ReplyDeleteI don't think there is one specific secret in finding success in America . As we all have our own, individual journeys to reach success. However, I do feel that in America specifically when it comes to immigrants they are limited in there capacity to obtain success because of political implications, especially towards certain minority groups. I think that the ability to persist even in the face of adversity from the greater society is a common trend amongst many immigrants as they have a dream and goal themselves, and many are leaving dire situations prior to coming here. I hope that in the future this ideal remains the same as migration is what made America the place it is today, but I am unsure if the current political climate and the negative views placed upon immigrants, will allow for more people to want to come and build lives here.
ReplyDeleteFrom my standpoint America used to be a placed where it guided people to have faith in themselves, a place where people can come to live a better life. But now i don't think of it as the same. It's much harder for an immigrant to come let alone stay. As for the foreseeable future, my concern lies with the current political turmoil. It's just going to get harder and harder for immigrants who are trying to create a life here. I don't think America will ever be the same if this continues.
ReplyDeleteAmerica is the land of immigrants, when this country is at its lowest point immigrants are the ones who build it back up without the hard work of immigrants this country wouldn't be as big as it is. with everything that is happening right now, America needs to remember that. America will be lost if we continue to go this path of pushing immigrants, so no the 'secret' of America's success will not continue at this rate.
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