Imagining the Immigrant

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Critique of “Imagining the Immigrant” In John Savant’s article “Imagining the Immigrant,” he implies that to fully understand the situation of immigration, we must imagine ourselves in the immigrant’s situation. The purpose of Savant’s article is to make his reader think and try to imagine what an immigrant goes through. Savant wants his readers to understand that immigration is something people do when they are seeking a better life here in America and when they have run out of options. He goes on to say that “Law and morality are not always commensurate”(1), meaning just because the law says immigration should be a certain way does not mean that that is the correct way morally to handle the situation. And although Savant makes a persuasive argument, he fails to tell both sides of illegal immigration. Both the good and bad. In his article “Imagining the Immigrant” writer John J. Savant give his opinion on the topic of immigration. Savant starts by giving examples of detectives and therapist, and how they must put themselves into other people’s shoes; metaphorically speaking, and use their imagination to fully understand a situation. “Imagination… can lead to moral clarification.”(1) Savant believes that we must try to imagine why an illegal immigrant chooses to come illegally before we make a judgment call. He goes on to tell two stories of two different, yet similar illegal immigrants and their (though illegal choice) morally correct choice. He closes in stating that “The survival and growth of our own civilization may well depend upon our imagining better.”(2). In other words, to achieve a better society we must imagine a better society. What Savant fails to provide in his article though, is both sides of immigration. In his article, Savant tells two stories of two similar families and how they came to America seeking a better life and better opportunities.
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