Part A: One striking aspect in “A Raisin in the Sun” was in Act II Scene III, when Bobo gives Walter the news that Willy went off with the money for the liquor business. I honestly did not think that would happen. I respected Willy to be one of Walter’s good friends. I thought they would invest in the liquor business together and make good money. I was in total disbelief when Bobo announced the bad news.
Also in Act III, I did not expect Walter to change his mind about accepting Mr. Linder’s “exchange”. I was totally surprised to find out Walter finally “comes into his manhood” with his decision. My perception of him changed for the better. For once throughout the entire play, I was proud of what Walter did.
Part B: Does A Raisin on the Sun present timeless issues?
No, A Raisin in the Sun presents many issues that are still common today. For example, my families today go through hard times such as deciding to have an abortion. Ruth became pregnant and actually put a down payment for an abortion. During the 1950’s abortions were illegal, making her decision even harder. Abortions are difficult decisions many women face today as well.
Another issue still common today are problems in marriage. At one point in the play Walter and Ruth’s love for one another was questioned. They fought badly at times, thus their marriage was heading in the wrong direction. In today’s society 50% of marriages end in divorce indicating major problems with the partners.
Lastly, racism still exists today. The Youngers faced racism before they even moved into their new house when Mr. Linder offers the Youngers money in exchange for moving somewhere else. Mr. Linder and the rest of the white community thought this decision was for the best for the community. Mr. Linder gives them the offer without even giving the family a chance, thus showing prejudice.
Justina Klecha
Intro to Literature 150-26
Professor Clovia Feldman
February 15, 2005
Exploration of the Text
How does the urban setting establish the atmosphere and mood of the play?
The urban setting establishes the perfect atmosphere. If the setting were in a rural area, the mood of the play would be different. Jobs for example, would be harder to have and maintain. This would cause more tension and problems with the family. Transportation would also have been more difficult. In the urban setting, automobiles were available as transportation.
Ruth was being prevented from having a baby because of money problems, Walter was bringing him self down by trying to make the liquor store idea work. Once Mama decided to buy the house with the money she had received, Walter figured that he should further go on with the liquor store idea. Then, when Walter lost the money, he lost his dignity and tried to get some money from the “welcome party” of Cylborne Park. Mama forced him to realize how far he went by making him show himself to his son how low he would go. But he showed that he wasn’t susceptible to the ways the racism created.
...The Matrix” and Plato’s “The Allegory of the Cave” almost gives the idea that the movies writers may have had a lot of influence from Plato’s allegory. The creation of this movie gives and futuristic prospective of “The Allegory of the Cave” letting the people who have seen the movie think about reality and the truth. In conclusion, Plato’s story of the cave brings up many philosophical points and most significantly, addresses the topic of society’s role in our lives. On some level, we are all influenced by the thoughts and actions of everyone else, but at the same time, we as humans have the ability to question, make our own conclusions, and finally make our own choices.
Some attempts at gothic architecture were made in 17th century but many were a mix-match of ideas. Even though in the early1600’s there was an early flowering of mediaeval architecture with the Kings College in Cambridge.
“A Raisin in the Sun” is set at in an area where racism was still occurring. Blacks were no longer separated but they were still facing many racial problems. The black Younger family faced these problems throughout the play. The entire family was affected in their own way. The family has big dreams and hope to make more of their poor lives. Walter, the main character, is forced to deal with most of the issues himself. Ruth, his wife, and Travis, his ten-year-old son, really don’t have say in matters that he sets his mind to. Beneatha, his sister tries to get her word in but is often ignored. Lena (Mama) is Walter’s mother and is very concerned about her family. She tries to keep things held together despite all of the happenings. Mama’s husband had just recently died so times seemed to be even harder. They all live in a small apartment when living space is very confined (Hansberry 1731). They all have dreams in which they are trying to obtain, but other members of the family seem to hold back each other from obtaining them (Decker).
Let us begin with the comparison of The Matrix with Plato’s Excerpt The Allegory of the Cave and Descartes Excerpt Meditation I. All of these readings seem to have characters that are in a world made of illusions and dreams. Deception is also very prominent in these stories; the characters are being deceived by what they see and by the world around them. In these stories, it is essential for the characters to uncover the truth about what is the true reality. In The Matrix Neo was told that the world he thought was real was actually nothing more than a virtual world made up by a computer program. He was not aware of the real world until he took a red pill, this awoken Neo from his dream state and allowed him to see beyond what he thought was true. Neo experienced different emotions after taking the pill. He experiences denial, confusion, and fear but finally ...
Walter Younger is a good example of a dynamic character because he changes from being blindly in love with money and dreams to turning into an adult who can make life decisions. Walter still loves money, dreams big, and has a hateful attitude, but he figures out how to regulate it. The Younger family faced racial and housing discrimination and segregation, and they were able to overcome it and set up a better life for themselves. This quote by Margaret Atwood, a Canadian poet, is a good way of summing up the thoughts and beliefs of Walter and the play: “I hope that people will finally come to realize that there is only one ‘race’ - the human race - and that we are all members of it” (Atwood).
A Raisin in the Sun is a play telling the story of an African-American tragedy. The play is about the Younger family near the end of the 1950s. The Younger family lives in the ghetto and is at a crossroads after the father’s death. Mother Lena Younger and her grown up children Walter Lee and Beneatha share a cramped apartment in a poor district of Chicago, in which she and Walter Lee's wife Ruth and son Travis barely fit together inside.
A Raisin in the Sun follows the events of an African-American family living in Chicago during the 50’s. It becomes apparent from the first scene that the family has financial issues. Walter who is discontent with his living situation, believes that an insurance check that his mother will be receiving will solve all of the families problems and allow for a better life. Mama uses a fraction of the check to purchase a house in a all white neighborhood. A representative of the Clybourne Park Improvement Association comes to visit the Youngers and offers to buy back their house at a financial gain and insists that Clybourne is no place for an African-American family. Meanwhile, Walter had already lost the rest of the insurance money ($6500) to his friend Willy Harris who runs away with the money leaving Walter and his family at a loss. This is particularly devastating because the money represents Mama’s husbands entire life of hard work as a laborer. In the end of this story, the Youngers are genuinely more happy and optimistic that they can live more fulfilling lives. The Youngers problem is one that exists in modern day families of the United States. Money management is a physiological issue between spouses and families.
It was a don of a new age, belief, conviction, and devotion were felt throughout the period, and it was the time of the Romanesque churches. This was the time to view these boundless, monastic complexes, majestic cathedrals, and painted artifacts; the churches were beaming with activity and life. With the assembly of nuns, monks, and local town folks, these structures offered safety, a simpler way of life thru thought, simplicity, and reflection, which than sparked an overall energy and spirit throughout the air, it was the age of faith. In this period of time a massive building project had begun, within a short time span of 150 years, the construction of more than 1000 monasteries, and abbeys were built throughout Western Europe. Some of the main architecturally features and designs were the massive towers pointed heavenward and seemed as if they were touching the sky, it made the church visible from great distances and became the center point of the towns where they were built. The stone portals separated the nonspiritual, from the divine realm and dramatized the entrance door, as the gateway to salvation. The Gothic style of architecture, or Gothic cathedral began in the seventeenth century and was born in France, Over 580 Gothic & cathedrals class churches were built and constructed between 1170 to 1270; they were often large enough to house the entire population of the town. Two dominant architectural designs and styles emerged Romanesque and Gothic; there were differences and some similarities between the two. If the Romanesque church constituted a rural retreat for monastics and pilgrims, the Gothic cathedral served as the focal point for the urban community physically dominated the town, the design of the to...
The term “Gothic” was coined by Italian Renaissance writers who blamed what they considered to be the non-classical ugliness of the art and architecture of the time, to the northern tribes of Germanic barbarians known as Goths. Baron Wolfgang van Schreck’s ancestors had invaded the Roman Empire and destroyed what was considered to be the “true” art of the time; walls that were much too high and thick, arches that were too steeply pointed. The Gothic school of architecture, which included flying buttresses, rib vaulting, pointed arches and the presence of gargoyles on the inside and outside of the building. At the end of the 18th century the term Gothic switched meanings, from “medieval” to “macabre”, through the intervention of a man named Horace Walpole (1717-1797). He was the son of the famous politician Sir Robert Walpole, Horace was a well-known writer and dilettante who gradually transformed his villa, Strawberry Hill, into the most famous Gothic building of age. With this the now cliché image of a Gothic castle is now an accurate representation of the non-classical ugliness of the time period itself.
"Gothic architecture and art." Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th Edition (2009): 1-3. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 12 Apr. 2010.
The Gothic Period in the twelfth century influenced the creation of Gothic Revival Architecture in the nineteenth century. Gothic architecture began in France in 1140. Some of the first buildings made using this style are the Basilica of Saint Denis and the Cathedral of Sens. (Gothic Architecture By Paul Frank) This style of architecture started losing popularity in the early sixteenth century, but did not die out completely during this time period. Gothic architecture was still predominantly in cathedrals and churches. The rise of Romanticism began in the eighteenth century–leading to an awareness and increased interest of the Middle Ages, specifically interest in church architecture. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gothic_Revival_architecture) Thus, Gothic Revival Architecture was created. When admirers of neo-Gothic styles wanted to revive medieval Gothic architecture, Gothic Revival Architecture was created—along with many sub styles, such as Polychrome Brick Gothic and Carpenter Gothic in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.
The gothic architectural style came about after the fall of the Roman Empire and was well received by the Catholic Church in England. Evolving from Romanesque styles, gothic style incorporates ribbed vaults, large pained and painted windows, and flying buttresses. Gothic styles also having pointed roofs and arches was popular during the mid to late medieval period. The gothic style of architecture is not only important, it was vital to the church, the people, and to the commonwealth of the cities and towns that had such amazing structures erected.
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 late 1950s was filled with racial discriminations. There was still sections living as well as public signs of Colored and Whites. Blacks and Whites were not for any change or at least not yet. A Raisin in the Sun, by Lorraine Vivian Hansberry, tells a story of a black family that is struggling to gain a middle class acceptance in Chicago. The family of five, one child and four adults live in a tiny apartment that is located in a very poor area. Dreams of owning a business and having money to accomplish goals is two key parts played out throughout the whole play. Walter Younger is determined to have his own business and he will go to ends met to see that dream come true. Financial bridges are crossed and obstacles arise when Walter makes a bad decision regarding money that could have help the family and not only himself, if he would have thought smarter. His pride and dignity are tested throughout the story and he is forced to setup for his family. The Raisin in the Sun helps readers to understand history of racial discrimination and how racial discrimination has an effect on the people in the late 1950s and early 1960s as well as how that has an effect on the characters within the play.