Dreams and Racism in A Raisin In The Sun At most times, the American Dream resembles an ideological puzzle more than a fully realizable image. Within the confines of her fantastical, theatrical world Lorraine Hansberry attempts to fit a few of these pieces together and, in the process, ends up showing exactly how everything doesn't just snap-together all nicely. The problems in her play, A Raisin In The Sun, deal primarily with the basic nature of humans and their respected struggle's to "make it" in America. The story, for the most part, centers upon an African-American family, their dreams for the future and an insurance check coming in for death of the eldest man. Stirring into the mix later is the hugely oppressive, …show more content…
The only man displayed positively is Asagai and he isn't representing the American ideal of manhood; he is representing the African ideal. Mama, however, is strong, spiritual and eager to help her children in any way she can. She values family above and beyond all else, but has the deep insight into the other character's motivations even when she doesn't agree. In the middle of the play (at the fuse for the final conflict), she recognizes that Walter is miserable because no one believes in him and his dreams. She gives him a large chunk of the insurance check to invest in a liquor store even thought she doesn't agree with it. She trusts him with it and, when he loses the money to a "trusted friend," she becomes enraged and begins to physically attack him. However, by the next scene she has forgiven him and tells her daughter that she should do the same; "There is always something to love: when do you think the time is to love somebody the most? It's when he's at his lowest and can't believe in hisself 'cause the world done whipped him so!" With those words, Mama seems to symbolize all that is good, solid and peaceful in the world. These two characters that make up the largest amount of gender specific conflict within the story, but not all of it. Further backing up the idea that plotting is feministic comes from the character Bennie, Walter's sister. She too wants to make something of herself;
The American Dream is defined as the ideal that every U.S. citizen should have an equal opportunity to achieve success and prosperity through hard work, determination and initiative. However, in 1950s to the 1960s, when the play A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry was written, the American Dream was expressed slightly differently. Post World War II the idea of the American Dream was owning a home in a decent neighborhood; starting a business- becoming an entrepreneur; a good paying job with longevity; and family planning or controlling the number of offspring (Hansberry). Although, most may believe in having the American Dream or becoming successful in life, only a few seem to obtain it. Statistics
In Lorraine Hansberry's play, A Raisin in the Sun,” she uses the Younger family to show that as characters strive to reach their dreams they often disdain the determinations of others but they may eventually learn to care one another in effort to better their lives. 'A Raisin in the Sun' by Lorraine Hansberry is a play about a family in the late 1940s that struggles through lack and discrimination to find the American Dream. American Dream the ideal that every US citizen should have an equal opportunity to achieve success and prosperity through hard work, determination, and initiative. This message explores their hopes and dreams. As it shown in the book that everybody wanted to pursue their own dreams and goals. They weren’t thinking about anybody else but their self. The absence of the American Dream does infiltrate much of the play. Each main character in the play seeks to appropriate the "American Dream" in their own lives. The family consist of the Mama, the deeply Christian grandmother; her son Walter Lee, his wife Ruth and son Travis; and Beneatha, her daughter.
Mama is an exquisite character, she is the head of the house and has also shared some very strong and powerful thoughts with Walter. For example, “If you a son of mine, tell her! You…. you are a disgrace to your father’s memory. Somebody get me my hat!” This quote is an example of Mama being an exquisite character because this is the most vivid thing Mama said. Mama was saying this to Walter, showing her humiliation towards hi actions, and the man he is starting to become. Additionally, “Mama absorbs this speech, studies her daughter and rises slowly and crosses at Beneatha and slaps her powerfully across the face. After…. her” These are stage direction of Mama, and this is showing that Mama has a line and the way Beneatha
Compare and contrast the ways in which the American Dream is presented through Walter Younger in Lorraine Hansberry’s ‘ A Raisin in the Sun’ and Willy Lehman in Arthur Miller’s ‘Death of the Salesman’
Mama’s compassion throughout the play affects her dreams. For an example, every decision Mama made was to make sure her family dreams were fulfilled. Owning a home would get Ruth and her grandson of the couch in the living room, or sacrificing for Walter even if it went against her beliefs. She says, “There ain't nothing as precious to me...There ain't nothing worth holding on to, money dreams
In the play, A Raisin in the Sun, by Lorraine Hansberry, one of the most important themes is the American Dream. Many of the characters in this play have hopes and aspirations; they all strive towards their goals throughout the play. However, many of the characters in the play have different dreams that clash with each other. Problems seem to arise when different people’s dreams conflict with one another; such as Walter’s versus Bennie’s, George’s versus Asagai’s, and the Clybourne Park versus the Younger’s.
Oppression and social injustice phased the African Americans living in the United States. Lorraine Hansberry and Dr.Martin Luther King Jr., exploited the reality of those issues in the 20th century through their literature. An African American family living in the 1950’s in Chicago face societal difficulties, oppression and racial injustice in Lorraine Hansberry’s, Raisin In The Sun. Dr. King Jr. acknowledges equivalent concerns in his well known speech, I Have A Dream, during the protest for civil and economic rights. Collating A Raisin In The Sun by Lorraine Hansberry and I Have A Dream by Martin Luther King Jr., they acknowledge oppression against African Americans as well as dreamfullment in their literary work.
American was built on dreams. Many people do come to this freed country for all kinds of reasons such as; having a better education, trying to have a better life, and just following their dreams. In the book A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry, a story about the Younger family living in America in the 1950s or 1960s, tells all about the struggles of living as a colored person in American. Throughout the story, the Younger goes troubles that an African American family would go through back then, but yet somehow achieve their American dream.
Mama slowly begins to believe that she is to blame for Walter’s immaturity due to her refusal to cede the position of head of the family to him for so long. The deficiencies in Walter’s character, whilst partially Mama’s doings, are due to his own trusting nature, selfishness, and drive for success. To begin with, Mama has never given Walter the opportunity to grow up on his
While Mama and Walter do want the best for each member of the Younger family, their drive to have a better lifestyle is due to their pride in being a parent and wanting the best for their children. Mama, the matriarch of the household, makes every decision based on what she believes to be the best for her family as a whole. Since she is the eldest member of the house, she is looked at as the boss of the
A dream is something that one is hoping will happen in life. Lorraine Hansberry’s main focus in her play, A Raisin in the Sun, is the achievement of dreams through the experiences of the Younger family who struggle as African Americans in Southside Chicago. For Walter Lee Younger, achieving his dream is a struggle. Unfortunately he is too greedy, has an overabundance of confidence and a lack of perseverance, which combine to sabotage his efforts.
A Raisin in the Sun is written by a famous African- American play write, Lorraine Hansberry, in 1959. It was a first play written by a black woman and directed by a black man, Lloyd Richards, on Broadway in New York. The story of A Raisin in the Sun is based on Lorraine Hansberry’s own early life experiences, from which she and her whole family had to suffer, in Chicago. Hansberry’s father, Carol Hansberry, also fought a legal battle against a racial restrictive covenant that attempted to stop African- American families from moving in to white neighborhoods. He also made the history by moving his family to the white section of Chicago’s Hyde Park neighborhood in 1938. The struggle of Lorraine Hansberry’s family inspired her to write the
In the original play, Mama is characterized as a woman who is strong and straightforward (498). A scene in the play that showcases Mama’s personality is when she beat Walter for being a fool for losing the insurance (562). This is important because it’s predictable as in when someone loses your possessions you hurt them physically and
Mama Younger is Walter’s mom and basically wears the pants in the house. Everyday Mama looks out for everyone and always puts herself last. Mama is very laid-back and down-to-earth. Walter is really upset with Mama because he says, “So that’s the peace and comfort you went out and bought for us today!” He is upset that the money did not go to him. Also, Mama only cares about what is the best for everyone, for example, she says, “Son- I just tried to find the nicest place for the least amount
“The american dream is that dream of a land in which life Should be better and richer and fuller for everyone with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement.” By James Truslow. The book “A Raisin In The sun” is written by Lorraine Hansberry,it is a play. It is about a family called the youngers that are living in the southside of chicago around the early 1950s.