A Raisin in the Sun Critical Analysis For many A Raisin in the Sun was a monumental play, others like myself who has just recently learned about the play and the author are now newly intrigued. A Raisin in the Sun is a playwright composed by Lorraine Hansberry. Hansberry always wanted to portray a real life scenario, and she did so with this beloved book. A Raisin in the Sun can be considered a turning point in American art because it addresses so many issues important during the 1950s in the United States. Like many books or playwrights A Raisin in the Sun has multiple themes to compliment the main idea. One main controversial theme or topic is the general role, or feminism role that takes part in the play. Being that this book particularly takes place during the late 50s and early 60s, there is a huge role that the woman contributed to. A Raisin in the Sun anticipates the changes in gender roles – primarily, the rise of feminism and the sexual revolution – that would transform American life in the late 1950s early 1960s. Hansberry explores controversial issues like abortion (which was illegal after the Roe v. Wade decision 1973 ), the value of marriage, and combining gender roles for women and men. …show more content…
Lena, who is in her early thirties, becomes the default head of the household upon the passing of her husband, Walter Sr.Walter's wife, Ruth, is in her early thirties. She is different from Lena in that she vocalizes her frustrations with her spouse, Walter Jr. Beneatha, a young feminist college student, is the least tolerant of society's unequal treatment and expectations of women. Beneatha constantly challenges Walter's chauvinism, who does not respect her ideas. Through these three women, Hansberry skillfully illustrates how women's ideas about their identity have changed over
The play “ A Raisin in the Sun” by Lorraine Hansberry shows three generation of women under the same roof and the struggle each women face, the dreams that they had and how they overcome the obstacle in their life to move on to something better. The women in the family has had to sacrifice a lot to make the family either happy or progress further in life.
Having a different point of view may change who you are. In the book Raisin in the Sun Beneatha seems to be different from everyone that surrounds her. She's always being questioned by the rest of her family when she says her opinion on something. In the poem “I, Too, Sing America” a black man is sent to the kitchen when company comes. These two relate because it shows how not all Americans feel the same about who they are.
A Raisin in the Sun, written by Lorraine Hansberry is a dramatic play depicting economic and social prejudice during the Harlem Renaissance era in Chicago. The central theme of this written drama is centered upon a forgotten dream. In this same way, This theme could be applied to both Walter's dream of economic stability as well as Beneatha’s dream to be a doctor. Hansberry uses literary symbolism techniques to convey the theme of economic and struggle in society for minorities in America. This drama uses multiple examples of symbolism to contribute to the theme of class and wealth.
The Scholarly Article “Review of the Original 1959 Broadway Production” explains the story/play A Raisin in the Sun written by Lorraine Hansberry. The article was found on Huntingtonthetatre.org, Accessed on August 27, 2015.The article begins with a short introduction of Loraine Hansberry and how she touches common issues that many African American families were struggling with in 1980. The play is about a lower class family that lives in South Chicago striving to overcome poverty. The characters of the story include a widow mother and her two children; she also has daughter in law and grandson who live with her as well. Claudia McNeil is described as a simple spiritual Matriarch, with a son who is driven to be a successful business owner,
Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun is a play about African American family living in Southside Chicago. A Raisin in the Sun portrays different ideas of the American dream through the Younger family members, and shows how these individuals struggle to achieve their personal dream in times of racism and social inequality. The character Walter Lee Younger dreams of becoming a successful businessman and providing more for his family.
A Raisin in the Sun was first produced in 1959 and brings forth many of the issues which were to divide American culture during the 1960s. Lorraine Hansberry, the writer, was an unknown figure who achieved her success when her play became a Broadway hit. Not only were successful young black women writers were rare at the time, but they were also virtually unheard of. Despite the unpopularity of colored women writers, the success of A Raisin in the Sun was stunning. Hansberry’s ability to articulate words make her successful and well known across the world.
The play, A Raisin in the Sun, takes place in the 1950s in a small apartment in the slums of the Southside of Chicago. It is the story of the Younger family who are struggling to realize their dreams of escaping the ghetto for a new better life. There are five family members who live in the cramped apartment which consists of two bedrooms and a shared bathroom in the hallway. Lena Younger or Mama is the religious elder matriarch of the family who has received a sizable insurance check after her husband passed away. Walter Lee Jr. is her oldest child, in his mid-thirties, who hopes to prove his prominence through using the money to become a wealthy liquor store owner.
Few plays have created a vision of 1950s American life as nuanced or multi-layered as A Raisin in the Sun, by Lorraine Hansberry. The stage of the play is set in Chicago in the home of a Youngers, an African-American family that live together in a small, squalid apartment. This close-knit family, though full of different personalities, has a dynamic which drives the story forward. Lena, known as Mama by everyone in the household, is the family matriarch and recently turned widow with a fiery personality and wisdom cultivated over the years. Her elder son, Walter, is married to his wife Ruth and has a young child with her named Travis.
A Raisin in the Sun is a play that focuses on the “American Dream” and one’s conception of a “better life”. The play is set in Chicago during the 1950’s and 1960’s. The younger live in a tiny apartment building with five people living in it. Each character in the play has their own view on what the American Dream is and what they perceive a better life would be. The author focuses on the importance of achieving one’s dreams regardless of the various struggles in the Youngers lives.
Today I will discussing and evaluating the play, A Raisin in the Sun, by Lorraine Hansberry. A Raisin in the Sun is a play that originated from the admiration and consideration of a poem. The overall plot is acted in order to express a single question. “What happens when a dream is deferred?” Throughout the play we travel along a journey with characters that are each trying to follow a personal dream.
A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry is a realist fictional in which the play's title and the action reflects the play's theme. The play focuses on Black American’s struggles to reach the American Dream of life. , liberty, and the pursuit of happiness during the 1950 and 1960. The idea of everyone having the chance to achieve a better life should exist for all. Hansberry created her title using the line from Langston Hughes’ poem “A Dream Deferred”.
The play, “A Raisin in the Sun” written by Lorraine Hansberry, showcases the struggles of an African American family in 1959. One of the major themes throughout the play is money, but the women’s role throughout the play make a huge statement on their suffrage back then. The women in the story are portrayed differently through each character. These women constantly fight to keep their dreams alive, but it becomes difficult because of their social status. Lena, Ruth, and Beneatha are three generations of Younger black women. Each woman dreams of a better future but have different ways of going about it. They each want to future the image of black women each in their own way. The Youngers live in a broke down apartment in Chicago, and cram[ped with five people living
A Raisin in the Sun is a play written by Lorraine Hansberry in the period following the Second World War. It is divided into three acts and explores the circumstances of the Younger family, a colored family living in the ghettos of southern Chicago. In particular, the play deals with the efforts of Walter Lee, the scion of the family to bring his family out of poverty and into riches by entering into a business venture. The play highlights the psychological and societal barriers to Walter's goal of becoming rich like the white people he sees around him. In effect, Walter's ambitions typify the American dream and the play discusses how the American dream is only a myth against the reality of financial inequality, racial prejudice and constricted social mobility.
A Raisin in the Sun is considered as a turning point in American art industry because it addresses many important issues raised during the 1950’s in the United States of America. The 1950’s are widely imitated in recent times as an age of conformism and complacency, referring to the growth of conurbation and commercialization that arises in that decade. However, it is superficial at its best. A Raisin in the Sun explores the vital issues of black housewives with their inferior status resulted in an upwelling of social indignation that would eventually find public voice feminist movements of the 1960’s. There are three main female characters in Lorraine Hansberry’s play.
A Raisin in the sun. The play was written by Lorraine Hansberry. She was one of the first playwrights to portray such a realistic representation of an African-American life; The plot is based on real life experiences that took place in her adolescent years. For many years she had seen her parents and family members, fight publicly against the discrimination towards the black nation. Those events that took place left such an impact on her, that it encouraged her to write a play based on what had happened. The play is focused on an African-American family living on the South Side of Chicago in the 1950's, A family in particular ; The Youngers. In this play you will have the insights of the struggles and obstacles that the Younger's had been