  the melting pot is a metaphor for a heterogeneous society becoming more homogeneous, the different elements "melting together" into a harmonious whole with a common culture. it is particularly used to describe the assimilation of immigrants to the united states. the melting-together metaphor was in use by the 1780s.p.50 see "..whether assimilation ought to be seen as an egalitarian or hegemonic process, ...two viewpoints are represented by the melting-pot and anglo-conformity models, respectively"  the exact term "melting pot" came into general usage in the united states after it was used as a metaphor describing a fusion of nationalities, cultures and ethnicities in the 1908 play of the same name. the desirability of assimilation and the melting pot model has been reconsidered by some proponents of multiculturalism, who have suggested alternative metaphors to describe the current american society, such as a mosaic, salad bowl, or kaleidoscope, in which different cultures mix, but remain distinct in some aspects.{{cite book|author=lawrence h. fuchs|title=the americ
American_culture Cultural_assimilation English_phrases Metaphors_referring_to_objects Nationalism Political_metaphors