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Examples of racial discrimination in'A raisin in the sun
A raisin in the sun beneath a analysis
Lorraine hansberry bravement
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Lorraine Hansberry was born in Chicago on May 19,1930. She was the youngest child of four and died in 1964 at the age of 34 from pancreatic cancer. She was well known for writing her play A Raisin in the Sun. Hansberry was influenced by two events from her childhood. She grew up in a middle class household during the Great Depression. During that time her family was considered wealthy. The first event that shaped her was when she was five years old in 1935.On Christmas her parents bought her a fur coat. When she went to school her parents told her to wear the new fur coat that they had bought her. When she arrived at school her classmates beat her up ( biographical video). The second event that influenced her happened when she was eight years old. Her father, Carl, bought a house in a White neighborhood. Hansberry and her family were African American so in 1938 many racial issues were still affecting her family. When the day came for them to move into their new house, the Hansberry’s family was met with a violent “welcome”. After being targeted several times, the family was almost evicted from the neighborhood house. As a result of this, her father brought a lawsuit against the Illinois court with the help of lawyers and the NAACP it eventually …show more content…
Another theme is the ability of a person to have some dignity even when it feels like the world is against you. These themes remain important today because it teaches us what can happen to a person if their dreams are never fulfilled. For example, Walter had a dream to open a liquor store, however this dream never came true after Willy (the person Walter gave the money too to open the store) betrayed him. He broke down and felt hopeless. It also teaches us that dignity is important, Walter also portrayed his need for dignity after he rejects the offer of Mr. Linder from the“home improvement
Hansberry faces housing discrimination due to her race, which affects her family. According to Susan Chenelle and Audrey Fisch from the New York Times, her father Carl Hansberry got a house for his family in the south side of Chicago in the 1930’s (Chenelle & Fisch, 2014). At that time there was a racially restrictive covenant that protected houses against being bought or occupied by African Americans. Therefore, this family was evicted by law. He sued and the case went to the Supreme Court around 1940, but he did not win because of the constitutionality of racially restrictive covenants. Luckily in 1948, the court found that this covenant is discrimi...
Throughout Act 2, we can see the development of the characters. Beneatha continues to find her identity by appreciating her African heritage. Walter becomes depressed when Lena buys the house and fails to realize that Lena did something for the family to become whole again. However, I believe that Act 2 focuses more on assimilation, Walter’s childishness, and Mr. Linder and the community’s racism.
A Raisin in the Sun In A Raisin in the Sun, Hansberry portrays obstacles that the Younger family and other African Americans had to face and over come during the post World War 2 era. Obstacles that had to be over come by the Youngers were economical, moral, social, and racist obstacles. Lorraine Hansberry, the author of the play had to face one of these as well growing up. Born in Chicago on the south side in an all black neighborhood, Lorraine Hansberry and her family had to deal with segregation.
Lorraine Hansberry is the author of the play A Raisin in the Sun. This play is very significant because it was the first play written by a black playwright to win the Best Play of the Year Award. Another interesting point about the play is the title. The title A Raisin in the Sun also refers to Langston Hughes poem Harlem. In many ways Langston Hughes’ poem relates to Lorraine Hansberry’s play. In the play a family of black Americans have a chance to move ahead in the cruel prejudiced world. Lorraine Hansberry shows the frustrations that occur when one’s dreams are deferred. The Younger family in the play experiences these times of misery when those dreams are broken.
Playwright, author, and activist or maybe hardworking, dedicated, and passionate are all worthy to describe the phenomenal Lorraine Hansberry. Born on the south side of Chicago, Hansberry was introduced to racial segregation at a young age. Racially discriminated and treated unfairly, Lorraine Hansberry set out to make a difference in the world some day. Attending University of Wisconsin in Madison, it was there that Hansberry discovered her appreciation of writing. This newfound love opened up an entirely new world for Hansberry in theatrical playwright. Hansberry found that theater plays allowed her to express her feelings and thoughts about the multiple issues and events that were constantly occurring during the Civil Rights era. Lorraine Hansberry believed strongly in not only racial equality, but gender equality as well. She like many Civil Rights leaders during that time period believed that all human beings should be treated equally no matter their race, gender, or beliefs. These strong views on the African American society lead the writing of one of the most famous plays of all time, “A Raisin in the Sun”. The highlight of her success “A Raisin in the Sun” became a stepping stool for Hansberry that allowed her to send her own personal message to her readers about things that bothered her. Being an African American woman during the 1960's caused Lorraine Hansberry to be ridiculed and looked down upon, not only by whites but by her own race due to the fact that Hansberry did not follow the stereotype that was placed on African American women. Lorraine Hansberry's "A Raisin in the Sun" uniquely illustrates the gender stereotypes African Americans placed among themselves during the 1960's Civil Rights era.
school. Walter's mother, Lena (Mama), plans to use the money for a house for the
The chasing of a mirage is a futile quest where an individual chases an imaginary image that he or she wants to capture. The goal of this impossible quest is in sight, but it is unattainable. Even with the knowledge that failure is inevitable, people still dream of catching a mirage. There is a fine line that separates those who are oblivious to this fact, and to those who are aware and accept this knowledge. The people who are oblivious represent those who are ignorant of the fact that their dream will be deferred. This denial is the core of the concept used in A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry. The perception of the American Dream is one that is highly subjective, but every individual dream ends in its own deferment.
themes. One that stuck out to me is Fitzgerald expressing how the idea of true love is just a
Backpack Literature defines theme as “the general point or truth about human beings that may be drawn from” a story. Most novels do not have one single theme, but instead have many themes spread throughout. Some of the themes may be related but others can come from opposite ends of the spectrum. The Great Gatsby has several themes that are related such as greed, lust, and selfishness. One of the themes that stood out to me was that some people will never be fully satisfied. This is demonstrated by Jay Gatsby’s continuous us of illegal activities to make more money to impress Daisy, by Tom Buchanan’s affair with a mechanic’s wife even though he was already married, and by Jay Gatsby constantly throwing parties to try and win Daisy back after
This theme is important to me because to me it means that there is no reason to give up because if I try, everything will come out at least kind of how I want it to be. One example from my past is when I broke my leg.
In the play A Raisin in the Sun, the author introduces various symbols as the play progresses, representing the dreams and desires of the characters. Among all these symbols in the play, the names of the characters illustrate each character’s personality best. Although symbols are usually physical objects that represent an abstract idea or thought, names have become symbols in this play, including Beneatha’s own name and George Murchison’s nickname for Walter Lee Younger, Prometheus.
Theme plays a very important part in this short story. Theme is the idea of a literary work abstracted from its details of language, character and action. The great example of theme that is evident throughout the entire short story is the duty to perform certain acts. We can see here that the Irishman Donovan is very big on obeying his duty to carry out orders that have been authorized to him.
In the words of Jim Cocola and Ross Douthat, Hansberry wrote the play A Raisin in the Sun to mimic how she grew up in the 1930s. Her purpose was to tell how life was for a black family living during the pre-civil rights era when segregation was still legal (spark notes). Hansberry introduces us to the Youngers’, a black family living in Chicago’s Southside during the 1950s pre-civil rights movement. The Younger family consists of Mama, who is the head of the household, Walter and Beneatha, who are Mama’s children, Ruth, who is Walter’s wife, and Travis, who is Walter and Ruth’s son. Throughout the play the Youngers’ address poverty, discrimination, marital problems, and abortion. Mama is waiting on a check from the insurance company because of the recent passing of her husband. Throughout the play Walter tries to convince Mama to let him invest the money in a liquor store. Beneatha dreams of becoming a doctor while embracing her African heritage, and Ruth just found out that she is pregnant and is struggling to keep her marriage going. The Youngers’ live in a very small apartment that is falling apart because of the wear and tear that the place has endured over the years. Mama dreams of having her own house and ends up using part of the insurance money for a down payment on a house in an up-scale neighborhood. The Youngers’ meet Mr. Lindner, who is the head of the welcoming committee. Mr. Lindner voices the community’s concerns of the Youngers’ moving into their neighborhood. Is the play A Raisin in the Sun focused on racial or universal issues?
	Society in the 1959 was full of racial discrimination. White and blacks were still living in their own "areas", the public as a whole was very slow to accept the concept of mixed neighborhoods – blacks and white living together. This book, A Raisin in the Sun, by Lorraine Vivian Hansberry, tells the story of a lower-class black family’s struggle to gain middle –class acceptance in the Southside of Chicago. The Younger family of five, four adults and one child live in a cramped apartment in one of the poorer sections of town. The dream of owning your own business and having all the money you will ever need is a goal held by many in society, then and now. Walter Lee Younger becomes obsessed with his dream of a business venture that will give him financial and social independence, after getting and losing the money that will help this dream become reality he realizes that pride and dignity are more important for him and his family.
Walter attempts to reinvent himself through his work and relationships to try and provide for his wife and family. Walter is fighting a battle within his household because he believes that Ruth, his wife, “couldn’t be on [his] side that long for nothing,” even though she is just trying to do what is best for everyone involved (Hansberry 32). Walter cannot see past his dream to realize the impact it would have on everyone else if it failed, so he drowns his sorrows in alcohol. Although “he knows the possibility of failure is also a vital part of the American success story” Walter is not just risking his own future, he is risking his child’s, mother’s and sister’s and without a second thought to his personal relationships, he blindly makes an investment on the chance of having the wealth and house he desires for everyone (Washington 98). Walter is so focused on reinventing his work life and having money that he loses sight of his family’s values and ideas. He does not care about Ruth being pregnant and the possibility of aborting their child as long as he can achieve his goals. Walter is living in a dream where he believes that “anyone can become anything he wants to be,” and that is not true in his case with the social and racial standards that are set against him (Washington 95). Walter sees wealth as ensuring happiness and having everything he desires, which is why he is pushing his family so hard for the money, causing issues. Even though all the odds are set against him in this time period, Walter cannot see past being able to provide for his family and having the American Dream that he most