Takaki, Ch.6 Emigrants from Erin

Takaki states, “Though they (Irish settlers) had planted new roots in America, many Irish found their minds wandering across the Atlantic to the hills of Ireland. Lying in bed at night, they could here “a little voice” calling them back to their “far, far counthrie.” (164) For them, the ocean was a psychological border, protecting them from hidden injuries and bitter memories.

Irish immigrants mostly felt that it was a necessity to travel to America. However they viewed the trip as being ironic, because the poverty in Ireland was created by English policies. Yet between 1815 and 1920, five and a half million Irish emigrated to America (140.) They were being forced out of their own land by the English and pushed to America where there was room for everyone. New settlers sent letters back to the main land describing of a boundlessness country free of tyranny and oppression. There was a demand for labor in America and the Irish intended to fill it. Even though they were provided with back breaking and non stop labor, they still found America to be better than the homeland. It was the same labor they’ve always done, yet they were surrounded with social suffering. They Irish workers were being pitted against workers of other races in the work force. They were trying to fight for their social class while at the same time being compared to blacks on the level of intelligence and personality. So the Irish attempted to assimilate into America through each generation. When they first settled they were forced into blue color jobs and along with that came degradation. But as each generation came, they began to adapt and veer away from negative stereotypes. They came to be educated and learned to erase the bad memories of the homeland.

Why were the Irish able to adapt so quickly into the new world. I suppose the color of their skin played a great role in this advancement into social class. I thought that Takaki jumped around a little too much while writing this chapter. Although their ware a lot of relevant information and a great deal of research, he failed to distinctly define why the Irish were able to assimilate into the American Culture.