“How does a bastard, orphan, son of a whore / And a Scotsman, dropped in the middle of a forgotten spot in the Caribbean by providence impoverished, / In squalor, grow up to be a hero and a scholar?” (Alexander Hamilton). The opening line of Lin Manuel Miranda’s Broadway hit “Hamilton”, is also the musical’s defining question. The rags to riches tale of Alexander Hamilton has captivated audiences perhaps like no musical before and with a staggering amount of immigrants entering the United States each year, it’s especially relevant.
Hamilton was an illegitimate child, the product of wedlock (Alexander Hamilton Lyrics and Annotations), never receiving a formal education in his birthplace of St. Kitts and Nevis and likely to have been privately …show more content…
For example, in Helpless from “Hamilton”, Alexander Hamilton claims that he “don’t have a dollar to my name An acre of land, a troop to command, a dollop of fame” (Helpless). This however, was a gross exaggeration. At the time of meeting Elizabeth Schuyler, Hamilton was a close aide of George Washington. He had served as a captain and led men during the Revolutionary War. Admittedly, he was not serving in combat duty in 1780 when the song is supposed to take place, but his achievements and track record were quite substantial, if not impressive. Hamilton’s life is an inspiring tale, but his rise is not as dramatic as claimed on Broadway in “Hamilton”. Yes, his abilities took him from nothing to nearly the presidency, but his college funding was the driving factor. Without it, it would have been nearly impossible for Hamilton to become a founding father, or even a free American. Hamilton was destined for a life as an impressive member of the struggling St. Kitts and Nevis colony. He was not “Another immigrant / Comin’ up from the bottom” but rather one of the sole immigrants doing so. As Mr. Kozuch noted “Exception is not the rule, yet we celebrate the exception”. Hamilton was an exception, and was only successful because of his wealthy benefactors in the Caribbean, yet society treats him as evidence of immigrants being able to achieve anything. So is the American Dream a possibility for immigrants, or is it simply a piece of
Hamilton was an illegitimate child, the product of wedlock (Alexander Hamilton Lyrics and Annotations), never receiving a formal education in his birthplace of St. Kitts and Nevis and likely to have been privately …show more content…
For example, in Helpless from “Hamilton”, Alexander Hamilton claims that he “don’t have a dollar to my name An acre of land, a troop to command, a dollop of fame” (Helpless). This however, was a gross exaggeration. At the time of meeting Elizabeth Schuyler, Hamilton was a close aide of George Washington. He had served as a captain and led men during the Revolutionary War. Admittedly, he was not serving in combat duty in 1780 when the song is supposed to take place, but his achievements and track record were quite substantial, if not impressive. Hamilton’s life is an inspiring tale, but his rise is not as dramatic as claimed on Broadway in “Hamilton”. Yes, his abilities took him from nothing to nearly the presidency, but his college funding was the driving factor. Without it, it would have been nearly impossible for Hamilton to become a founding father, or even a free American. Hamilton was destined for a life as an impressive member of the struggling St. Kitts and Nevis colony. He was not “Another immigrant / Comin’ up from the bottom” but rather one of the sole immigrants doing so. As Mr. Kozuch noted “Exception is not the rule, yet we celebrate the exception”. Hamilton was an exception, and was only successful because of his wealthy benefactors in the Caribbean, yet society treats him as evidence of immigrants being able to achieve anything. So is the American Dream a possibility for immigrants, or is it simply a piece of