Similarities Between I Have A Dream And A Raisin In The Sun

Essay Portion

Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have A Dream" speech is perhaps one of not only the greatest speeches of all time but also one of the best overall representations of what the civil rights movement was and the common beliefs and goals shared by those who were apart of and supported it. Similarly, A Raisin in the Sun is also an accurate and meaningful portrayal of the civil rights movement and the hardships endured by African American citizens who suffered at the time. The two authors of these works being Lorraine Hansberry and Martin Luther Kid Jr. In both cases these pieces aim to look at the oppressed African Americans in the United States both leading up to and during the early 1900s. The state of America had become largely racially divided and was destroying the lives of innocent people.

Hansberry and King were able to clearly highlight the racial tensions that plagued America at the time while also offering potential solutions to the issue.

In Kings speech he states that the people of America must come together in order solve the divide that has been created by previous history. In one of his most famous quotes alike he declares "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character". With Hansberry's depiction of the time, she more so captures the individual and family side of the oppression. Her story, being focused on a family living in Chicago, chronicled the stress and events taking place when a family receives a life insurance check in the mail in which they cannot decide together how to use

it.

Once more are both representations alike in the fact that they accurately show how the oppression had affected the personal lives and upbringings of African Americans as they were from a young age, made to feel lesser than human and inadequate by a large part of society. From education to the workplace, segregation had created an almost completely divided society throughout the country. This was a massive factor in the development of all African Americans and A Raisin in the Sun was able to depict the struggle uniwith depth and feeling.

Finally, a highly present common factor in both texts was that of the severe inequality and discrimination the African Americans had faced and the toll that it had impacted their lives and relationships. As stated again by king "I say to you today, my friends, that in spite of the difficulties and frustrations of the moment, I still have a dream." This showed that even though they had to deal with so much coming at them, the African American community would persevere through the oppression and follow the goals that they were set to achieve.

To solidify the basis of these presentations it must be stated the overall impact of both texts on the advancement and of the African American community. King had, what many believe to be the deciding factor in the depiction of the civil rights movement and the eventual success of its contributions. Lorraine Hansberry's work is also considered one of the best films that accurately depict the struggles of an American family's life.