This novel is about a strange character, Holly Golightly. The narrator takes a specific interest in her life, her music and her adventures. By focusing on this unique woman, the reader learns about New York around the 1940s. Holly appears to be this outgoing person who is caught up in life. She doesn’t believe that anything unfortunate can happen to her, not even the fact that she was pregnant as such a young age. We later learn that this type of attitude and her racist views trace back to when she was a poor child who ran away, after her parents passed away. She dreams of luxury and refers to Tiffany’s many times. This reflected the immigrant dream since people migrated to New York in search of a better lifestyle. In a way, I was reminded of The Great Gatsby when reading the part when she hosts a gathering. Holly created an upper class mirage, yet one can tell that she really wasn’t part of the wealthy. Another aspect that struck me was her age. She was constantly attracted to older men which to me showed that psychologically she was in need of guidance or a fatherly figure. Nonetheless, it was still weird that she was married so young to Doc. The past constantly mentally haunted her. In conclusion, she escaped and changed her name in order to live a better life, one filled with luxury. The fact that she was able to act older and naive assisted her in forming this mirage of a perfect life.

As the book concludes the reader can see how the two powerful men work together to improve the city. Together, they financed projects such as the FDR drive, La Guardia airport, hospitals, housing and I was even surprised that they had a contribution to our own Brooklyn College. Greatly, the New Deal forced the city into a “new economic system.” Soon, Tammany Hall perished and La Guardia made his way into politics and eventually become the first reform mayor to win reelection in New York City. Even though many times La Guardia was glorified, Roosevelt was the better politician. While Roosevelt put in as much effort as he could La Guardia was planning on remodeling the White House. This makes one question the validity of La Guardia’s campaign and wonder if the city made the right choice with the reelection. However, the real test of his power was during the third and fourth term when World War II broke out. Immediately, citizens showed their nationalism with a willingness to fight for the United States if necessary. The Foreign Policy became the central focus of politics at the time. During this war Italian Americans conflicted in their feelings toward Mussolini and fascism in Italy. They felt neglected and belived the mayor was ethically disloyal. In this way, La Guardia was slowly voted out of office. Therefore, the wartime period proved to be too much for La Guardia to handle. Federal aid for urban projects diminished and the city was plagued by German u-boats.

This part of the book was mainly about the New Deal and how both La Guardia and Roosevelt contributed to saving society from the crisis at the time. What mainly caught my attention was how each of them had a specific goal and viewpoint when coming into office. Automatically, La Guardia focused on restoring credit since he believed ” a city simply cannot do the things it would like to do unless financially able.” I agree with this statement, the city needs money in order to prosper and produce more capital. Roosevelt’s main focus was “putting people to work.” He even desired to move workers out of the city and into the countryside. This once again shows his childhood preceding in his later life. Together, the two, along with other figures such as Robert Moses, built up infrastructure in addition to  political stability and economy. In doing so, they linked the five boroughs together to form a greater state. Overall, I can’t help but wonder, would the city be able to overcome the Great Depression if someone else was in office at that time. Even though this situation is viewed as negative, the book gives off a positive view since the end result, due to the efforts of these figures, made the city so prosperous.

This book discusses the lives and political aspects of president FDR and mayor La Guardia. After reading this section of this historical novel, the reader is able to compare the two significant New York figures. FDR was proud of his family lineage and certain expectations such as success were bestowed upon him therefore, his path was already set out for him. On the other hand, La Guardia came from a family of immigrants which reflected later in his life when he worked at Ellis Island as an interpreter and when he was partners with two Jews who were specialized in immigrant business. Meanwhile, FDR’s first exposure of the way the Lower East Side lived was when Eleanor, who had long been accustomed to city life, accompanied him there. It was a sight he would never forget. Initially, FDR was raised to believe that his estate entailed a civil custodianship and La Guardia always exhibited an interest in public affairs. Later, their policies and political ideologies become clear, such as during the progressive era and the great depression. It is arguable that FDR’s policies during the great depression such as the New Deal saved society. In addition, he believed that western politics had to achieve the end goal of liberty of the individual therefore, society needed to develop better cooperation. La Guardia was a major figure during the progessive era. Acting on the behalf of the socialists, he opposed prohibition and believed that people had a right to a certain standard of living since they contributed to the wealth of the community. These were a few major details about these two important figures of New York. This book emphasizes how they both contributed to government and shaped it for the better.

This novel by Christine Stansell depicted a world that drastically evolved over time. The author discussed how many groups of people fought through what was perceived as an abnormality back then to get to the society that we live in today. In the 1890s immigrants came to New York for many various reasons. They wanted an opportunity to live a different lifestyle, they were curious and wanted to matter.

One group of people that emerged around 1895 were homosexuals. These people weren’t thought to be manly or normal. The fact that a man enjoyed art as opposed to politics was unfamiliar and unfamiliar to society. Men were known to be strong and masculine. Homosexuals were not viewed in such a way. However; with time society became more accepting and today a majority of homosexuals live in Greenwich Village which was and still is associated with its sociable environment. Along with homosexuals Russians, Jews,  African Americans and Women left their mark in society. One way in which people were able to have a say in the world was through politics. This was one of the main reason that Russians migrated during the Russian Revolution. In this way, New York was an escape for them. In addition, woman such as Emma Goldman was brave enough to speak and write about crucial social issues. One of these issues was the limit/ban open speechifying law which limited people to speak openly about government and politics. Through the efforts Goldman’s hard work she was able to nationally address this issue along with many other issues as well.

Each immigrant saw New York as a chance to mean something in the world. Bohemia turned “outsiders into insiders.” In this way, Bohemia provided each individual with hope and inspiration. While reading about all of the significant movements and changes that made society evolve into the melting pot that it is today, I was able to make connections to All Nations Under Heaven the previous book we read. Both literary works described how people were inspired by New York City and devoted their life to what they believed in ultimately succeeding in shifting the way people think and act.

Today New York is viewed as a diverse city composed of many different cultural and ethnic groups. It is known as the city that never sleeps. People are constantly moving about in order to accomplish various tasks. New York is also well known for its economical background. In All Nations Under Heaven, the author depicts how multiple cultures migrate from their hometown to a different colony. The various groups of people moved for many reasons. For example, the Dutch were interested in the economical opportunity that the fur trade provided. The “profitable trading venture and competing English claims to the territory” made the Netherlands a desired land. Another reason why people moved to this new colony was because it was “tolerant of religious refugees, ethnic and linguistic minorities, or political exiles.” To the European population, this far away land was promising of a better future. Various groups of people continued to migrate to this new world and eventually set up a flourishing colony which in many ways reflects in the way we live and prosper today.

Even though many issues evolved with the settling and mixing of cultural backgrounds, each group learned to stand up for what they believed in and overcame each challenge. This allowed for the colony to function and prosper. As a result everyone was able to live together peacefully overcoming their differences and problems such as religion and segregation. This directly impacted and formulated the world in which we live in today that is viewed as a cultural mix especially in New York.