An American in the Making

Multi-Ethnic Literatures of the Americas (MELA)

by Marcus Eli Ravage

Excerpt from An American in the Making

The average American, when he thinks of im migrants at all, thinks, I am afraid, of something rather comical. He thinks of bundles — funny, pictu resque bundles of every shape and size and color. The alien himself, in his incredible garb, as he walks off the gang-plank, appears like some sort of an odd, moving bundle. And always he carries more bundles. Later on, in his peculiar, transplanted life, he sells nondescript merchandise in fantastic vehicles, does violence to the American's language, and sits down on the curb to eat fragrant cheese and unimaginable sausages. He is, for certain, a character fit for a farce.

278 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1971

Reviews

[Deb · Rating 4 out of 5]

It ended rather abruptly and I'm disappointed with that only because I was enjoying it so much. I listened to to this as an audiobook on LibriVox but I imagine I could have read this and enjoy Ed it just as much. It didn't sound dated at all considering that it think it was published around 1913ish. No, this immigrant story could have easily been able someone who came from Russia today and the trials of trying to work his way up and assimilate into American life. It was very interesting. In fact I was engrossed. The author was a very good storyteller. My how inflation has changed us. This guy went through his freshman year of college for $200 and he paid for every bit of it with hard work. More recent generations may say they worked their way through college but there are still loans and grants and their really just working for their books, food and necessities. Back in the day they really worked for things.

I definitely recommend this book. I would even read more by this author if it's out there.

[Mary Grace McGeehan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book after reading a magazine excerpt from it as part of my project of spending 2018 reading as if I were living in 1918 (myyearin1918.com). It's witty and engaging, one of my favorites of the year. Ravage describes coming to the United States from Romania alone at age sixteen, working in a Lower East Side textile factory while attending night school, becoming a socialist, and struggling to fit in among his gung-ho classmates at the University of Missouri.