More handpicked essays just for you.
What happens to the deffered dreams in a raisin in the sun
A raisin in the sun characters analysis
A raisin in the sun characters analysis
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry is a play about a struggling African American family who lives in the slums of Chicago. The main family, the Youngers, is in a financial hole and each person in the family has a dream. However, it will take a large amount of money for each individual to complete their dream. The three main dreamers of the play would be Walter Lee (the main character), Beneatha (Walter’s sister), and Mama (Walter’s mother). Walter’s dream is to start a liquor business, Mama’s dream is to buy a house for her family to live in, and Beneatha’s dream is to go into medical school and become a doctor. In the story, the most important dream would have to be Beneatha’s dream. She wants to become a doctor and completing her dream could potentially have an enormous impact on women, African Americans, and people of all kinds. Many will try to argue that Mama or Walter have a better dream because Mama’s dream gives them a place of their own and Walter’s dream is a good source of immediate income. However, there are many flaws in the dreams they have. While it is true th...
Lorraine Hansberry, the author of A Raisin in the Sun, supports the theme of her play from a montage of, A Dream Deferred, by Langston Hughes. Hughes asks, “What happens to a dream deferred?” He suggests many alternatives to answering the question. That it might “dry up like a raisin in the sun,” or “fester like a sore.” Yet the play maybe more closely related to Hughes final question of the poem, “Or does it explode?” The play is full of bombs that are explosions of emotion set off by the frustration of the Younger family, who are unable to grasp the possible reality of their dreams. The family shares the dream of having a better life but compete against each other for the insurance money given to Mama after her husband’s death. The son of Mama, Walter, dreams of being a rich black man by investing the money in a liquor store. His sister, Beneatha, wants to use the money to finish school, so she can pursue her life as a doctor. Mama would rather use the money to buy a home and leave their run down house in the ghetto. Their frustration is obtained from their dreams being deferred and the emotions burst like an exploding time bomb.
The play A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry, takes place in the late 1940s, a time of much racial and gender discrimination. The Youngers, an extended, financially struggling african american family, are living in a small apartment together. At a certain point in the play, Lena, the grandmother and matriarch of the family, receives a check for $10,000 after her husband passes away. Each person in the family has a different dream of using the money, and antagonism builds between the various family members. Beneatha, the twenty year old daughter of Lena, wants to use the money to go to medical school to become a doctor. Successfully becoming a doctor was an extremely strenuous act for a female during this
In A Raisin In the Sun Lorraine Hansberry uses everyday objects-a plant, money, and a home to symbolize a family's struggle to deal with racism and oppression in their everyday lives, as well as to exemplify their dreams. She begins with a vivid description of the family's weary, small, and dark apartment in Chicago's ghetto Southside during the 1950s. The Youngers are an indigent African-American family who has few choices in their white society. Each individual of the Younger family has a separate dream-Beneatha wants to become a doctor, Walter wants to open a liquor store, and Ruth and Mama want a new and better home. The Youngers struggle to accomplish these dreams throughout the play, and a major aspect of their happiness and depression is directly linked to their achievement, or failure to achieve their dreams.
A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry portrays a struggling family, made up of individuals with very different and important dreams, to show the role of dreams in life. Each character makes most of their decisions with their goal in mind, constantly finding ways to get closer to their goals. The numerous dreams within their household and each members’ desire for their respective goal, prevented most of the primary characters from living out their dreams. This left multiple dreams still out there, unachieved, and providing the major theme of the play. The title, A Raisin in the Sun, comes from the poem, Dream Deferred, and serves as an allusion to Dream Deferred.
To begin with, A Raisin in the Sun, Act I , starts by introducing the five main characters; Lena, Ruth, Walter Lee, Beneatha, and Travis Younger. All of these characters, in my opinion, have unfulfilled dreams, which mostly involve money. Although this family is separated from the white middle-class culture, they too have the same type of dreams like the rest of the american society. Firstly, Mama’s plant symbolizes her dream because she cares for it as she cares for her family. Even though the plant doesn’t get enough light or water, it grows with her care and love, just like her family. Her family struggles but with her
"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 the play A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hasberry the Younger family lives in a small apartment in Chicago in the1960's even though they don't have a lot of money they still have dreams they would love to achieve. The Younger family consists of Mama, who's dream is to buy a house. Walter Lee who's dream is to own a liquor store. Ruth, who's dream is like mamas to have a bigger home for her family. Beneatha, who's dream is to become a doctor, and there is Travis he doesn't really have a dream. A theme that is seen in the play is never give up on your dreams good things will come.
“A Raisin in the Sun” was written by Lorraine Hansberry. It's about a black family in the 1950s living in a small apartment on the Southside of Chicago, who struggles with family, money, racism, sexism, and the American dream. Beneatha is the daughter of Lena (Mama) and sister of Walter. In “A Raisin in the Sun” Lorraine Hansberry shows the obstacles involved in achieving the American dream, involves Struggling with family and money as well as overcoming racial and gender prejudices.
“A Raisin in the Sun” written by Lorraine Hansberry is about an African American family struggling to survive in Southside Chicago during the 1930’s. The main characters, Walter, Ruth Mama, and Bennie all have different relationships towards one another. However the three women all shape Walter Lee’s actions, relationships and values throughout the story.
The award-winning play A Raisin in the Sun, written by Lorraine Hansberry focuses on characters that are challenged by the reality of their dreams and the harsh society around them. Walter Lee Younger, a working man with a small family, is someone who has high hopes for his future, but, during the book, he repeatedly had doubts about the outcome of his goals. As the play progressed, Walter’s dream plays a large role in his character development because he starts off as a man who felt as if all of his family members neglected his dreams, and transitioned into a person who is willing to do whatever it takes for his family’s dreams to flourish, instead of purely his own.
American writer James Truslow Adams once said, “Life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement…” (Epic) Adding on, Adams explained full achievement of the American Dream can be perused by anyone, no matter one’s race, gender, personality and other personal differences between man. The play, A Raisin in the Sun, written by Loraine Hansberry, has characters that have personality traits that provide them a path to success and the American Dream. The Younger family, in the play are below the average middle class American family, but overall, they are hard believers and all members have different views of the American dream based on their personality’s, especially Beneatha Younger. At the time of the play, chances of becoming a doctor and even going to college as a black woman, were very rare, however, Beneatha
A Raisin in the Sun is a play written by Lorraine Hansberry. The primary focus of the play is the American Dream. The American Dream is one’s conception of a better life. Each of the main characters in the play has their own idea of what they consider to be a better life. A Raisin in the Sun emphasizes the importance of dreams regardless of the various oppressive struggles of life.
Dreams are something everyone wants to achieve at some point in their life. In the play everyone in the younger family had a dream they wanted to achieve. They lived on the southside of Chicago during the 1950s. The Younger family consisted of Walter, Ruth, Beneatha, Mama, and Travis. Walter’s dream was to be a businessman, Mama’s dream was to own a house, and Beneatha’s dream was to be a doctor. Sometimes dreams can cost a lot of money to achieve and sometimes money can be the reason of not achieving dreams. In A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry, Walter, Beneatha, and Mama show the hardship and pain of reaching the American dream aw worsened by financial constraints.
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.
A Raisin in the Sun,written by Lorraine Hansberry, is about an African-American Family,the Youngers, during the 1950’s-1960’s. The story is set in Chicago and talks about a family that wants to live the American dream but run into trouble along the way. I believe that the Youngers do have an American dream and they definitely go through hard times but find a way out. Mama wants to move out of their crappy apartment. Walter, the son, wants to open a liquor store with two of his friends, Willy and Bobo, but he isn’t make enough money as a chauffeur.Beneatha,the daughter, wants to be a doctor after an accident that happened when she was little.Ruth, the wife of Walter, is trying to keep the Youngers together. Travis, Ruth and Walter’s son, wants
Sometimes I walk past the house – dread, hate and fear filling up my insides. Sometimes I think I put myself through the pain to make myself stronger. All I can feel is hate and anger invading my blood, my body and my mind. When I think of those months, the waiting dark clouds are released to take over the few memories filled with light.