Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun revolves around a short but difficult period in the lives of the Younger family. Each family member has dreams of a higher quality of life; free from the pressures of poverty and the literal confines of an outgrown and decrepit apartment. Ultimately, the ambitions of each Younger are inspired by dreams of a better life for the family as a whole. Though each Younger approaches this goal differently, they each desire to rise above their current position in the “rat trap” of society into a better, more respectable, life (964). Each Younger is chasing an ambiguous notion of success and believes that they will bring an end to the family’s hardships; consequentially leading to prosperity and, of chief importance to the Youngers, the rebirth of the families relationships and pride.
Walter Lee Younger aspires to obtain wealth and fortune through entrepreneurism and business savvy. Walter’s belief that money is life drives his desire to become a powerful business person and fuels his belief that the family’s problems could all be solved with enough money (980). Unfortunately, Walter’s lack of experience, demonstrated by his belief that “don't nothing happen for you in this world ‘less you pay somebody off!”, continually hinders his success in life (957). Despite his shortcomings, Walter is persistent in his belief that he can succeed as a entrepreneur, eventually resulting in the loss of the family’s insurance money to Willie Harris. Walter’s belief that money is the solution results in him taking an unreasonable risk. Though these risks result in harm coming to his family they were undertaken in a desperate attempt to improve their lives.
Walter’s actions are also significantly motivated by hi...
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...ay own, as well as reasserting their pride as a family and establishing themselves in a higher socioeconomic bracket. Though the hardships will undoubtably continue, working together the Youngers will succeed.
Works Cited
Ardolino, Frank. "Hansberry's “A Raisin In The Sun”." Explicator 63.3 (2005): 181-183. OmniFile Full Text Select (H.W. Wilson). Web. 23 Mar. 2012.
Cooper, David D. "Hansberry's A Raisin In The Sun." Explicator 52.1 (1993): 59-61. Academic Search Complete. Web. 21 Mar. 2012.
Hansberry, Lorraine. “A Raisin in the Sun.” The Norton Introduction to Literature Potable Tenth Edition. Ed. Alison Booth and Kelly J. Mays. New York, NY: Norton, 2011. 950-1021. Print.
Matthews, Kristin L. "The Politics Of 'Home' In Lorraine Hansberry's A Raisin In The Sun." Modern Drama 51.4 (2008): 556-578. MLA International Bibliography. Web. 22 Mar. 2012.
While the Younger family of “A Raisin in the Sun” finally realize the suburban dream of a home with “three bedrooms. and a nice big basement” African Americans of the play; rather, the younger family is met with disrespect and derision. Hansberry uses the characters of George Murchison and Mrs. Johnson to illustrate class stratification amongst African Americans during the post-war period. The scenes with these particular characters highlight the class conflict that occurred within the African American community throughout this period of suburbanization. Before seeing how class differences play an important role in “A Raisin in the Sun,” one must examine the location in which the play takes place.
A Raisin in the Sun, by Lorraine Hansberry, is set in the 1950s, chronicles the life of the younger family, struggling to survive Chicago’s Southside.(111) A series of events transpires challenging the “American Norms” depicting the nuclear family and its “unabashedly patriarchal” life of the 1950s (Domina). The Younger’s are a family with a power structure that is complicated, and they have no clear leader. Women by definition of societal principle are presumed under a shadow from birth, of what they are capable of and the roles they are expected to fulfill. Hansberry creates a character in Ruth who is portrayed as a “beaten down” woman whose disappointments in life have “begun to hang in her face” (111) Ruth is struggling to find herself and yet stay loyal to the expectations of a “settled woman” ()
In Hansberry’s play, A Raisin in the Sun,” she uses the Younger family to show that as individuals strive to reach their dreams they often ignore the aspirations of others but they may eventually learn to support each other in an attempt to better their lives. Hansberry uses each character to express the different views people may have about the American Dream. Each family member has their own pursuit of happiness, which is accompanied by their American Dream. From Momma’s dream of having a better life for her family, Beneatha’s dream of becoming a doctor, and Walter’s dreams of being rich, the Younger family show’s typical dreams of an African American family in the 1950’s.
The idea of characters fulfilling and working towards their dreams is a common and relatable theme throughout today’s entertainment culture. From television shows to feature films, it becomes a main focus because many spectators can relate to the exact dream or inspires them to reach for or create a similar dream for themselves. The film “A Raisin in the Sun” takes place in Chicago featuring an African American family living in a small, three-bedroom apartment in the 1950’s. This apartment is not big enough for such a large family and, as a result, the youngest has to sleep on the couch in the living area because there is not enough room or money for a bed for him. Since money is very tight within the family, the insurance check for the death of the father of the family is much needed, but also a source of conflict within the family because they must choose the best way to spend this money to help all achieve their dreams. The Younger family is full of dreams and aspirations, both as a family and as individuals.
On pages 141-144, in A Raisin in the Sun, Hansberry shows how society and the mind of a black man is heavily affected by the structures put in place hundreds of years before he was even born. The structure of the matriarchal family in the African American community derived from slavery. This structure affects Walter Lee Younger Jr. Walter Lee’s mother, referred to as Mama in the play, is now the head of the family after her late husband, Walter Younger Sr., dies. The original structure was more of a patriarchal family, but the immaturity, and several times being chewed up by the world and spit out, Walter Lee’s mother has taking the task of leading the family. However, her dominance and roll in the family weakens her son, making him internally
Hansberry, Lorraine. "A Raisin In The Sun." Comp. Henry Louis. Gates and Nellie Y. McKay. The Norton Anthology of African American Literature. New York: W.W. Norton &, 2004. 1771-830. Print.
Hansberry, Lorraine. A Raisin in the Sun. The Norton Introduction to Literature. 10th ed. New York: W.W. Norton & Co., 2011. 950-1023. Print.
This story shows how a family stuck together in hard times with faith and hard work that they would get through it. Sometimes people may have the same opportunities, but it is very likely all will have different outcomes. The risky nature of Walter may have put the family in a bind with his investment falling through, but what they did still have was each other. At least now, Walter especially, has the opportunity to learn from his
Even though south side chicago had a low amount of hope, the characters of Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun, Walter, Beneatha, and Mama found a way to dream big. It led them to doing what they thought was right, eventually molding Walter into a greedy man during most of the play, Beneatha into an aspiring woman that demands respect, and Mama into an improvising woman who loves her
Differences in generations can cause people to have different viewpoints in life. A Raisin In The Sun is a play set in the 1950s written by Lorraine Hansberry. The Youngers are a black family who lives in a cramped apartment in the South Side of Chicago. When Mama receives a check of insurance money, members of the family are divided in their own hopes of what it will be used for. Mama, Ruth, and Beneatha are the three women of the Younger household and their generational differences clearly show through their actions. The difference between generations is why Mama is the most devout, Ruth is an agreeable person, and Beneatha is outspoken and has modern views.
In life there are always going to be ups and downs, good and bad times, because families go through extensive amounts of arguments. Within the play A Raisin in the Sun, written by Lorraine Hansberry, there are a few complications that the Younger family face. Moreover, the main complications occur between Lena Younger (Mama) and Walter Lee Younger (the son of Mama). Throughout the play, the biggest complication they face is how to spend Walter Lee Senior’s life insurance money. The Younger family goes through several challenging times; however, the family shows that no matter what, everyone should stick together.
The dominant theme in A Raisin in the Sun is the quest for home ownership. The play is about a black family living in the Southside of Chicago-a poverty-stricken, African Ame...
Lorraine Hansberry's A Raisin in the Sun is a play about segregation, triumph, and coping with personal tragedy. Set in Southside Chicago, A Raisin in the Sun focuses on the individual dreams of the Younger family and their personal achievement. The Younger's are an African American family besieged by poverty, personal desires, and the ultimate struggle against the hateful ugliness of racism. Lena Younger, Mama, is the protagonist of the story and the eldest Younger. She dreams of many freedoms, freedom to garden, freedom to raise a societal-viewed equal family, and freedom to live liberated of segregation. Next in succession is Beneatha Younger, Mama's daughter, assimilationist, and one who dreams of aiding people by breaking down barriers to become an African American female doctor. Lastly, is Walter Lee Younger, son of Mama and husband of Ruth. Walter dreams of economic prosperity and desires to become a flourishing businessman. Over the course of Walter's life many things contributed to his desire to become a businessman. First and foremost, Walter's father had a philosophy that no man should have to do labor for another man. Being that Walter Lee was a chauffeur, Big Walter?s philosophy is completely contradicted. Also, in Walter?s past, he had the opportunity to go into the Laundromat business which he chose against. In the long run, he saw this choice was fiscally irresponsible this choice was. In Lorraine Hansberry's A Raisin in the Sun, Walter Lee's dreams, which are his sole focus, lead to impaired judgement and a means to mend his shattered life.
The play “A Raisin in the Sun” by Lorraine Hansberry illustrates an African American family receiving money from a deceased family member at the beginning of the play. When the Young family accepted this large amount of money, they moved into a house in an all white community in Chicago around 1950s. During this time period there were many social issues that were uprising. Some of these social issues are the following: racism, gender identity, and roles of women. These social issues are the ones which were explored in the play “A Raisin in the Sun”.
In the book A Raisin in the Sun, the time period is set in 1955. A time in America where African Americans still dealt with a constant struggle between them and the rest of the country. It touches on subjects that were very sensitive especially at the time the work was released. Even though the setting of the book was in the north, Lorraine Hansberry seemed to want to show that things weren’t that much better in the north than they were in the south at that time. Segregation was still being implemented in the law system, and there was a missing sense of equality among everyone. It shows that Lorraine Hansberry took what was going on around her environment and portrayed those situations into her work. The three events listed include Rosa Parks