...it was before,” (Yeats). In this drama we see characters devolve from difficult challenges in their life. All of the challenges faced through out the play brought the family closer. In A Raisin In The Sun by Lorraine Hansberry, The theme of conquering challenges in order to reach a dream is shown through character development of Walter, Beneatha and Mama. In Hansberry's A Raisin In The Sun, Walter Younger transforms from a selfish impractical dream of running a liquor store, to becoming the respected patriarch of his family. In the beginning of Act 1, Walter explains his desire to open a liquor store. He says, “This morning, I was...
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...Outline Thesis Statement: One of the major themes of "A Raisin in the Sun" is the devaluation of capitalism as a measure for success and its replacement by family pride. I. Walter Lee is obsessed with obtaining money from the very beginning of the play. His very happiness depends on success, and he measures this in wealth. 1. He longs to be successful. His speech at the end of Act II, Scene 2 beginning "You wouldn’t understand yet, son, but your daddy’s gonna make [...] a business transaction that’s going to change our lives [...] You just name it, son, and I'll hand you the world!" (Hansberry, 96) 2. Money is the only means of being successful or obtaining success. When asked why he cares so much about money, Walter screams, "Because it is life, Mama!" (Hansberry, 64) II. Mama encourages him to take her place as head of the family, despite disagreeing with his lust for wealth. 1. Mama tries to convince him that money is not the solution to Walter's crisis of purpose in a speech: "Something has changed. You something new, boy. [...] You ain't satisfied or proud of nothing we done. You my children - but how different we done become." (Hansberry 62) 2. Still she trusts him with the money in order to further his pride and encourage his familial responsibility. "I'm telling you to be head of this family from now on like you supposed to be." (Hansberry, 94) III. After the money is all but depleted, Walter stands up for himself and his family and spurns money in favor...
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...In the play ¨Raisin in the Sun¨ the character Walter wants to have money so that he could afford things for his family. This dream of Walter ultimately leads to him losing some of his morals because he risk his family's money, he is selfish, and how he believes money is everything. When someone puts money over everything they are only trying to pursue happiness, but they fail to realize that they must find happiness within themselves. Throughout the story Walter changes and becomes a better man and remembers who he is and what his culture is about. In the story Walter starts to lose his morals when he becomes money hungry and envious. For instance “ Mama sometimes when I’m downtown and I pass them cool-quiet-looking restaurants where them white boys are sitting back talking bout things...sitting there turning deals worth millions of dollars...sometimes I see guys don’t look much older than me”. Walter is jealous of businessmen who can afford a high standard of living. He can’t stand the fact that men his age have more money simply...
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... The Use of Dreams and Objects in A Raisin in the Sun and the Symbolism Behind Them Lorraine Hansberry’s play A Raisin in the Sun details the difficult lives of a family as they strive to survive in a time of uncertainty, and inequality, for a people that are considered second class citizens. This family has lived through much adversity, but they continually strive to better their lives while they try to maintain faith in their fellow man, and each other. Even though everything around them is structured for their failure, they still strive to better themselves through each other’s love, support, and individual dreams or desires. Even though they have been instilled with strong spiritual and moral values, they still struggle at times to remain true to these values and not let their dreams and desires lead them astray, or let the unfair times bring them down further. In A Raisin in the Sun Mama, Walter, and Beneatha cling to various objects that embody their dreams or desires, even if some of them are misguided, but whether good or bad, these objects and dreams affect their individual personalities in profound ways that eventually heal them individually, and collectively, as a family. When one reads A Raisin in the Sun, one will see that the objects and dreams in the play are used to symbolize Mama, Walter, and Beneatha’s strength of character, how it has developed, and how it is constantly evolving. To help understand...
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...play A Raisin In The Sun primarily using the character Walter Lee. Another work of literature that touches upon this issue of pride is the short story “The Rocking Horse Winner” by D.H. Lawrence, where the protagonist Paul demonstrates pride leading to madness taking over. These works are comparable with the theme of Pride being that both character’s, Walter and Paul, on took daring actions for their mother with the best of intentions. However although alike, these works differ because Walter’s mother wants to better her family’s living situation and fulfill a dream as opposed to Paul’s mother who is simply greedy as well as hungry for money and materialistic things. Throughout Hansberry’s A Raisin In The Sun the members of the Younger family each explain their own desire for success and a better life. While each member of the family hopes for something different, in the end they all wished to better their family situation. Walter’s discussion with Ruth in the beginning of the play illustrates his definition of success and the “American Dream” when he is ranting “Charlie Atkins was just a “good-for-nothing loudmouth” too, wasn’t he! When he wanted me to go in the dry-cleaning business with him. And now- he’s grossing a hundred thousand a year. A hundred thousand a year! You still call him a loudmouth!” (Hansberry 615). This scene shows how Walter is envious of wealth and considers bringing in a large income being a success. Much like the Younger family from A Raisin In The...
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...“A Raisin in the Sun” What happens to a dream deferred? In the poem written by Langston Hughes detects what could happen to dreams that are not pursued or maybe even dreams that don’t come true. In the play A Raisin in the Sun, written by Lorraine Hansberry which also discuss dreams and how they can change throughout time. Both Langston Hughes and Lorraine Hansberry write about the effect of dreams and pursuing happiness. Neither of the two directly spells out racism but by reading the two together they are talking about the dreams of African Americans and how their dreams are harder to achieve and sometimes they just shrivel up like a raisin in the sun or maybe it just sags like a heavy load Hughes writes. The realities of dreams during this era in time for African Americans were slim. In Hansberry’s play we know that blacks are not equal to the whites. The main theme in both pieces of work is about the dreams and ambitions that everyone possesses and to be able to overcome society’s views and live a life that you want for yourself, regardless of what anyone else says or does. Broken dreams can be extremely hard for anyone but more so if you are already expected to fail. A Raisin in the Sun becomes about dreams as the main characters try to overcome obstacles in their own lives to achieve their dreams. The title of the play is perfect because of all the dreams and failures that are mixed throughout the play will the Youngers dreams shrivel up “like a raisin...
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...Comparative Literature Paper By Jamie Earlywine The two pieces of literature I chose to compare are “Oedipus Rex” by Sophocles and “A Raisin in the Sun” by Lorraine Hansberry. These two pieces of literature were written in two different time periods. One was written in ancient Greece while the other was written in the 1950’s. These two pieces of literature do have many differences but they also have some similarities. Let’s take a brief look at each of these and then we will compare and contrast the two pieces. “Oedipus Rex” revolves around a nobleman, Oedipus, who leaves his city when a prophecy is revealed to him that says he will kill his father and marry his mother. He travels to the Thebes to escape his fate. On the outskirts of the city, he meets and quarrels with a group of riders, all of whom he kills. When he finally arrives in Thebes, he finds that the Sphinx is tormenting the people. The Sphinx refuses to leave the city unless someone answers his riddle. King Laius has been killed, and the land is without a monarch. Oedipus takes on the challenge, answers his riddle, and becomes King of Thebes. He also marries Jocasta, the widow of Laius.The play is set many years later. A plague has descended on the land, so Oedipus summons the blind prophet, Tiresias (who brings dire warnings). Through a number of conversations, Oedipus discovers that killed on the road was none other than the king. Oedipus has more of a claim to the throne of Thebes...
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...July/5/2012 The Gap of Generations Morals and goals change throughout generations as they grow up and go through different events. Lorraine Hansberry wrote A Raisin in the Sun and in the play a man name Walter and his Mama fight throughout the story of how they should think about what is most important to the two people. Mama grew up in the early 1900s and how she was treated and what she had back then helped mold her in to the things she finds most important. Walter grew up where he has more chances to do stuff that his mother could never even think of. Mama and Walter have totally different out look at life between money and family. Mama’s values are pretty basic she just wants to keep the family together no matter what. What she had to go through growing up helped her mold her values. Mamas values is that all her children will believe in god, and when Beneatha says “god is just an idea”(Hansberry, Raisin 1598) and totally downs god and has nothing to do with the real world and is all about people control everything. When she starts to talk like that in front and to her mother she starts to go off and slaps Beneatha in the face. Telling her this is how things are going to run in her house. Domina agrees with me by saying “Throughout the play, Mama has been trying to lead Walter into the realization of his own dignity, and it is finally through her forgiveness and trust that he achieves it” (Domina 4) Mama tries to get Walter to realize what his prim goals and values should be...
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...“What happens to a dream deferred? Does it dry up like a raisin in the sun? Or fester like a sore--And then run.” In Lorraine Hansberry’s play A Raisin in the Sun it portrays a few weeks in the life of the Youngers, an African-American family living on the South Side of Chicago in the 1950s. The title of the play references a conjecture that Langston Hughes famously posed in a poem he wrote about dreams that were forgotten or put off. There are four main characters in the play, Mama (Lena Younger), Walter Younger, Beanetha Younger, and Ruth Younger. Each of the main characters in the story expresses their opinions about what they want and need or wish to have, due to their struggles in everyday life. All of the characters in the Younger family each have a different dream they want to fulfill. One wants to move to a bigger home, one wants to attend medical school, one wants to rise above his conditions though does not necessarily have a plan to do so. Each Character dream serves an important psychological function (hope, motivation, direction). A Raisin in the Sun is essentially about dreams, as the main characters struggles to deal with the oppressive circumstances that rule their lives. Mama Younger, the matriarch of the family, is religious, moral, and maternal. She wants to use her husband’s insurance money as a down payment on a house with a backyard to fulfill her dream for her family to move up in the world. Throughout the story you see Mama’s character as one who is...
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...difficult for individuals, as well as families, as unremitting rejection from society left many in poverty. Subordination of minorities in American generated a strenuous struggle by both African-Americans and numerous white Americans advocates who endorse the termination of racism and encourage egalitarianism. The awe-inspiring production A Raisin in the Sun became renowned as a historical reenactment of a handful of people most personal, influential, monumental, life altering moments in life that occur within their home. The play epitomizes real life’s situations about overcoming obstacles, defining one’s distinctive way of life, and handling idiosyncratic conditions at home in a reconstruction of the fictitious Younger family who animate life in 1950s America, moreover Chicago. The play was created by an African-American writer Lorraine Hansberry in 1959 who advocated for human rights which consists of racial minorities and women. In the day to day reality of the Younger’s situation, Mama, Beneatha, Ruth and Walter are able to come together in harmony realizing that together they are stronger than they are separately. The moral in A Raisin in the Sun, publicized through the Younger family, epitomizes the magnanimous gesture of gratitude and devotion to always love your family, the people you are already given in life to be a companion. The characters in the story have very different personalities which lead to a family dynamic that evolves into a common acceptance by the end....
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...Questions on A Raisin in the Sun Answer any 8 questions, but make sure to answer #8 1. What does Mama’s plant represent, and how does the symbol evolve over the course of the play? Examine the end of the play. Why is Mama returning for her plant the last action we see on stage ?Mamas plant represents her faith in her dreams. That regardless of their living arrangements and life’s struggles, but never to give up on anything. She took care of it every day it was a representation of her dreams to always live in a bigger and better house with a yard. It showed how strong she was throughout everything life gave her. That’s why she took the new plant to the new house to show that never giving up and keeping your faith her strength in believing in dreams that they come true. Struggle but to maintain your dignity. Dreams do come true. 2. How does the description of the Younger’s’ apartment contribute to the mood of the play? The apartment sets the mood because it sets the surroundings and the environment . It is a small apt with one window it gives the feeling of being cramped and trapped. It lets you know there in the ghetto and are poverty stricken. 3. How does the idea of assimilation become important? The family shows in the hope to succeed regardless of any obstacles. The struggles with their identity as with being African Americans. Beneatha with her academics to be a doctor to heal, and as well as her conflicts with Everyone. ...
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...The Complexity of Privilege and Domination Privilege always occurs at the expense of others. Allan Johnson states, “The trouble we’re in privileges some groups at the expense of others. It creates a yawning divide in levels of income, wealth, dignity, safety, health, and quality of life” (Johnson 7). Allan Johnson states this in Chapter 1 of his book Privilege, Power and Difference and it is one of the most powerful statements in the whole book. Privilege creates a great divide between people. This can have a negative lasting effect, if not under control. Society has divided people into two groups: superior and inferior. The superior groups are the ones that are privileged in society and the inferior ones are ones that are underprivileged; however, there is a certain complexity that comes with privilege. There are so many different combinations of race, gender, class, sexual orientation or disability status that can occur so finding a person who fits all of the above is difficult. Ideally, it would be a white, wealthy, heterosexual male who is not disabled. Majority of people in the world do not fit that description. It is much more likely that an individual would be privileged in one or two of those categories. The complexity of privilege lies in the fact that individuals who are seen as superior and therefore privileged are entitled to have more opportunities than those who are underprivileged and inferior; however, this is not guaranteed. Allan Johnson’s...
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...In Lorraine Hansberry, “A Raisin in the Sun” we begin with a typical day with the Younger family getting ready. The play begins with a description of the living room, with the main theme being weariness. Throughout the play we can see that the Younger family is struggling, and await an insurance check from the death of the father. Though the money is not yet there; each member of the family has a plan for the money in question. Mama wants to buy a house to fulfill the dream she shared with her husband, Beneatha wished to use the money for medical school. Walter Lee would rather ‘invest’ the money and Ruth, Walter Lee’s wife, agrees with Mama and wishes to buy a house as she sees the strain a small home places on the family. As the play progresses the tensions rise and ultimately Ruth comes to state that she is pregnant but considering abortion. At this point Mama rushes out the door and is not seen until later. Upon her return, Mama informs the family she has put a down payment on a house, she speaks to her son about it; describes how they would live in it but Walter Lee remains sullen. He feels his mother has ‘butchered his dreams’. Walter Lee keeps sulking and begins to miss work, but after a heart to heart with mama he feels he is finally validated as the head of the household when he is entrusted with the remaining of the money. The days go by and the family begins to prepare for the move....
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...A Raisin in the Sun Latika Vick, Sharlyn Harvey, Suzette Alarcon, & Candace White BSHS/422 November 26, 2011 Tim Nolan A Raisin in the Sun A Raisin in the Sun is a play written by Lorraine Hansberry based on a colored family between WWII and the 1960’s. The family matriarch is Lena Younger, mother to Walter Lee Younger and Beneatha Younger. They reside in a Chicago Southside apartment along with Walter’s wife Ruth and son Travis. Living in a two-bedroom apartment which they share a bathroom with their neighbor is one of many obstacles the Younger family encounters. Their home is reaching capacity and they learn Ruth is pregnant. This one of many reasons the Younger family desires to move into a home in Clybourne Park. This writing will address some of the challenges the Younger family endured as a poor colored family living in Chicago and ways to address their problems. Walter Lee is the main character who battles with alcoholism, depression, discrimination, and the loss of his father. This writing will also concentrate on the Younger’s culture, beliefs, values, and religion. Cultural Issues and Problems Culture is a set of shared values, goals, practices, behaviors, and beliefs shared by a particular social, ethnic, or age groups. Lena Younger has raised her family to believe and have faith in GOD, love, and provide for family, value education, and work hard. Although she valued these things she still tried to instill values in her children. In...
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...A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry A Raisin in the Sun is a play written by Lorraine Hansberry, which debuted on broad way in 1959. They play takes place sometime in the 1950’s, a time period wrought with social issues which were ignored by the general public. The play concentrates on the Younger family; Ruth, Travis, Walter Lee, Beneatha, and Lena, the family head. The events of the play take place over the course of only a few weeks, where-in the Younger family is to receive a large sum of money for the death of Lena’s husband. The family is then torn between what they all want from the money, causing conflict. Ultimately they move into a house in an all-white neighborhood. (Hansberry 1959) Lena’s husband, Mr. Younger, died and as a result, the family is scheduled to receive a 10 thousand dollar check on Saturday. This causes a lot of tension between the family members, including Ruth and Walter Lee. They get into multiple arguments regarding the money. In one particular argument, Walter indulges Ruth with his dream of opening a liquor store, and that he only needs a few thousand dollars. Ruth disregards him and tells him to eat his eggs or they’ll get cold. (Hansberry 1959) After not getting a favorable response from Ruth, Walter says ( ). Walter uses the phrase “Eat your eggs.” as fuel to express how women keep men from their dreams, and that women need to support their husbands, especially in their culture. During the 1950’s, being a supporting housewife was...
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