New York: On the Corner of Diversity and Opportunity

Tom Wolfe said, “One belongs to New York instantly, one belongs to it as much in five minutes as in five years.” Through his quote, he elucidates to the world that New York possesses the ability to take anyone in and habituate them to the awe-inspiring synergy of unity and complacency. New York City, embedded with its prevailing notions of ambition, faddishness, and passion, attracts millions of people through its lingering aroma of uniqueness and freedom. For over one hundred years, New York’s ability to spellbind not only foreigners, but also many “born and bred” New Yorkers themselves, has been captivatingly brilliant. Literary artist, E.B. White, tells his readers in his masterpiece, Here Is New York,

“There are roughly three New Yorks: There is, first, the New York of the man or woman who       was born here, who takes the city for granted and accepts its size and its turbulence as natural and inevitable. Second, there is the New York of the commuter – the city devoured by locusts     each day and spat out each night. Third, there is the New York of the person who was born         somewhere else and came to New York in quest of something” (White 698).”

Personally, I believe that these three aspects of New York lie within me. Although I am a native New Yorker who commutes to my niche everyday, I am still on a quest for something greater than myself, whether it is success, passion, love, or pure amazement. New York is anything one wants it to be. Most imperatively, I am certain that through it’s offering of resplendent diversity, uncommon opportunities, and a hint of inspiration, New York acquires the power to do something extraordinary: change people’s lives.

E.B. White tells his readers, “New York is the concentrate of art and commerce and sport and religion and entertainment and finance, bringing to a single compact arena the gladiator, the evangelist, the promoter, the actor, the trader and the merchant” (White 696). This quote really supplements one of my myriad infatuations of New York’s sense of diversity. The occupational diversity really synthesizes the pulchritude of New York because a variety of different people travel either thousands of miles or just a couple of miles to contribute to the economic stability by utilizing their professions in one of the greatest cities in the world. Later on in his writing, White goes on to say, “The city is like poetry; it compresses all life, all races and breeds, into a small island and adds music and the accompaniment of internal engines” (White 700). Such a concise, yet symbolic sentence really brings out the truth about the cultural diversity in New York City. On every street corner, one can find a wide array of people of different backgrounds and cultural heritages. The amount of cultural uniqueness in New York City isn’t just a beautiful element, but its what puts New York City’s name up in lights and really contributes to my admiration of the Concrete Jungle’s ethnic admixing. New York Natives writer, Sarita Dan, brings out the exquisite aspect of New York’s diversity when she says in her article, Around the World in 5 Boroughs: It’s the People, Not the Places, “The beauty of New York City is its melting pot character. Historically, New York was a hub for immigrants, and it remains so today. As many as 800 languages are spoken throughout the 5 boroughs and 36% of the population is foreign born” (Dan 1). The different amounts of ethnic foods, religions, holidays, and ways of life in New York City flood the streets, giving New York a logo of cultural autonomy and desire. There are not many places in the world that possess such overt diversity, which is why my appreciation for New York’s diversity is overbearingly obsessive. Cynthia Ozick, author of The Synthetic Sublime, from Quarrel and Quandary, encapsulates the locational diversity of New York specifically. From pages 948 to 959, she enlightens readers about almost every part of New York City, ranging from Soho to the Upper East Side. Within these pages, she utilizes a wide range of descriptive adjectives to glorify New York’s charm. I believe that because there are practically an infinite amount of locations in the New York City, one will be exposed to distinctive tastes of food, people, places, and traditions. Sarita Dan even says, “Regardless of where you eat, shop or walk, to live and breathe in New York City means coming into contact with people from all over the world all the time.” New York City is by far one of the most complex locations in the world that centers its attraction upon diversity, which really supplements my view of New York as an immense melting pot.

In the late nineteenth century, millions of immigrants around the globe ventured to New York City for one sole purpose: opportunity. As they arrived in New York, the Statue of Liberty left them in awe. Up until this day, the Statue of Liberty is viewed as a symbol of newfound opportunity and freedom. In her Synthetic Sublime piece, Cynthia Ozick tells her readers, “What Manhattan talks about, obliquely or openly – what it thinks about, whatever the season – is ambition” (Ozick 959). I couldn’t agree more with this statement, and I strongly believe that this is what gives New York a sense of drive and ambition. Millions of people a day swarm the crowded streets of New York in their professional suits, rushing to get to their jobs because they’re motivated in achieving their professional goals and focused on making a name for themselves. New York City provides an infinite amount of jobs, whether it is selling food on a sidewalk or being a notorious C.E.O. for a financial firm. It is because of the multiple jobs offered that gives New York a glorified name of opportunity and freedom. Thousands of tourists venture through the busy streets of New York each day, hoping to be amazed by the bright lights, tall buildings, and acclaimed landmarks. I claim that it is because of the tourists and foreigners why New York is deemed as a place of a multitudinous amount of opportunities. In E.B. White’s, Here is New York, he says, “Each neighborhood is virtually self-sufficient. Thus, no matter where you live in New York, you will find within a block or two a grocery store, a barbershop… a shoe-repair shop” (White 702). In these lines, he mentions a variety of different occupations that are offered within the streets of New York, and it really supplements the fact that New York is a land filled with economic opportunity because of the grandiose number of jobs that are offered. New York is, without a doubt, a place of vast opportunity and leeway for success.

For over a century, New York has gradually deserved the title of a “melting pot”. Not only does this one single spot on a map offer a brilliant amount of diversity, but it also hands people the golden ticket of prodigious opportunity. Ever since my younger days as a child, I was consistently immersed in the versatility of New York. Every street corner offered me something that I couldn’t grasp because it was so beautifully complex. That something was inspiration. Every trip to Manhattan would allow me subtly levitate towards the unbelievable aspects of such a phenomenal city. Today, I am finally able to be embraced by the city’s diversity and opportunity. Most prevailingly, I am finally able to transform myself into anything I want to be; because at the end of the day, that is my personal view of New York: New York is a place that changes people’s lives.

 

Works Cited

Dan, Sarita. “Around the World in 5 Boroughs: It’s the People, Not the Places.” New York           Natives. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2014.

Ozick, Cynthia. “The Synthetic Sublime: From Quarrel to Quandary.” Scan-to-email (2000):        946 – 961. Web. 24 Sept. 2014.

White, E.B. “Here Is New York.” (1949): 695-711. Web. 24 Sept. 2014.