Lorraine Hansberry 's A Raisin

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.

Once seated, we saw that the stage was mainly bare with a chair on the left hand side of the stage. This suggested to the audience that the play would be non-naturalistic unlike, a west end theatre production.

In Lorraine Hansberry’s “A Raisin in the Sun” (1959), she reveals the life of the Youngers family. In doing so, there surfaces a detrimental ideology that destroys the family financially and in their overall happiness. In Act II Scene I, Walter, the father figure of the family, says, “Why? You want to know why? 'Cause we all tied up in a race of people that don 't know how to do nothing but moan, pray and have babies!” (Hansberry 532). By way of explanation, the family and much of the African-American community for the 1960’s, is built upon a loose ideology that is a brutal cycle that infects the lives of those who inhabit the area; tired of all the commotion from the Caucasians who, to them, miraculously achieve a life of ruling and

Sadly when I arrived at the theater I was not even sure I would be able to focus on the show, for my mother who was meant to see this production with me yet was unable to. Due to unforeseeable circumstances that neither one of us could for see and so with all of this hanging over head I was really hoping to get a laugh from this play, which it did. This was not the first time that I had come to see a play at Boise Little Theater, but definitely this was the first time that I had done it on my own. Which was a tad

They are a family of 5 squeezed in a two-bedroom apartment, they are restricted socially and financially with Walter (the father) working as a chauffeur for a white was the only bread winner for the family, he dreams of opening a liquor store and his sister Beneatha his sister studies to become a doctor despite the strain it puts on the family. The Youngers get a new chance when ten thousand dollars comes in the mail and Lena (Walter’s mother) decides what to do with it. She decides to buy a house for the family in a white neighborhood, gives the rest to Walter who lost it all in a Liquor store scam. Dreams of buying a new house, going to school and opening a business are shared by many Americans but for the Youngers those dreams were harder to achieve than most families. Being African American and poor in the 50’s meant they had to deal with racism, unequal opportunities, financial restraints and even housing segregation when trying to improve their living conditions.

In the play Lena Younger and her family was rewarded ten thousand dollars of life insurance money, which is a lot of money for a family of their socioeconomic class. With that kind of money the Youngers dreamt for better things, like a new house, a family owned business as well as med school for Lena’s youngest daughter Beneatha. The poem Harlem by Langston Hughes paraphrases these dreams perfectly. One could see how all of their dreams exploded into existence during the weeks leading up to them receiving the check, and ultimately ended up sagging like a heavy load when Lena’s son Walter Lee Younger lost most of the money to his thieving friend Willy Harris. Their dreams were instantly deferred because they had to come back to the reality of not expecting anything when Walter Lee lost the money. Walter’s dreams were

6. What technical areas did you notice? Make specific comments about the scenery, costumes, lighting, and sound. Did the technical aspects enhance or hinder the production? Would you do anything differently? I loved the scenery for this play from all the plays I have seen this year performed by Henrico High School. The backdrop for the Northern lights was simply stunning. It even a times it shows the twinkling of lights behind the backdrop, that provides the image of dazzling stars. The moving platforms even had the perfect representation of a modern house. It is safe to say, I wouldn’t change a thing about this

This was the first play or theatre performance that I have attended. I was unsure of what to expect, but I heard great things about this play. Furthermore, the first aspect of this production that caught my attention was the design of the set. The design gave the feeling of a run down urban neighborhood by making the outer parts of the stage look like an old brick building. The building looked like one you would find in a low-income area or projects. The scenery of the play set the stage for what type of production this would be. I especially liked the way they carefully chose not to place just any kind of props on the stage. The dusty

On February 26th 2016, I went out with my friend to saw this event. It was the first time of my life to be in such production. I was not a fan of theaters. I thought they are boring. Now, my mind has changed because the play was amazing. So, on the next day,

The play “ A Raisin in the Sun” by Lorraine Hansberry shows three generation of women under the same roof and the struggle each women face, the dreams that they had and how they overcome the obstacle in their life to move on to something better. The women in the family has had to sacrifice a lot to make the family either happy or progress further in life.

After World War II, African Americans had unequal opportunities in many aspects of their lives. A Raisin in the Sun, a play by Lorraine Hansberry, mirrors the conflicts endured by African-Americans after World War II who were hoping to better their lives, but still held back by the racism and bigotry of earlier eras. Despite the legal barriers of segregation in the 1950s, black families were still being denied access to jobs, higher education, and particularly as it relates to the play, desirable neighborhoods in which to raise their families. At this time, black families like the Youngers, had planned living arrangements from zoning issues. They were blocked from the neighborhoods because of covenants and racial steering matters. The

According to a 2017 publication of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco Economic Letter, black men in America earn 80% of what white men earn (Daley, Bart, Joseph). This illuminates the wage disparity and the notion that America is racially biased in terms of compensation. Power is often determined by the amount of money one has. How power is determined by race and skin color is a central theme in both A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry and To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. It is also exemplified in US history, as shown in the documentary, American Dilemma. These sources show that the power of colored people is extremely diminished by their lack of access to good jobs and therefore money.

In A Raisin in the Sun, Lorraine Hansberry utilizes the insurance check to symbolize the American Dream as the check provides the members of Younger family with the opportunity to achieve their aspirations. The concept of the check reveals Walter’s and Mama’s perceptions of themselves and of their lifestyle, and their responses to the check reveals their contrasting approaches for escaping their impoverished world; therefore, Walter’s and Mama’s characteristics and reaction to the arrival of the check ultimately emphasize the racist nature of society that restricts opportunities for advancement for African Americans in the 1960’s. Hansberry illuminates Mama’s power within the household as she makes all of the decisions regarding the insurance check. Additionally, Hansberry highlights her dignity and pride in her African American heritage as she intends to escape poverty through providing structure and decent, secure living for her family, which she intends to achieve through buying a house. In contrast, with the arrival of the check, Walter exposes his weak identity through disappointment and hatred for his job and his lifestyle. His desire to invest the insurance money in a liquor store presents his desperation for financial success and control over his destiny. Ultimately, Hansberry utilizes the check as a symbol for the American Dream for the Younger family; thus, with its arrival, Mama and Walter reveal their opposing identities in the household and different intentions

In Lorraine Hansberry’s play “Raisin in the Sun” many of the characters struggle to achieve their dreams and often have them deferred due to race and gender. In the play, an African American family must learn how to live in a time period where racial segregation and gender inequality is normal and obvious. In the 1900s, men saw women as less superior. In Langston Hughes’ poem “Harlem”, it explains how dreams are deferred when it comes to the African American population. Hughes writes: “Does it dry up, /like a raisin in the sun?”(2-3). Hughes and Hansberry want to let everyone know the hardship African Americans dealt with and that at often times, their dreams were deferred. Racism made it difficult for some African American families to make

Lorraine Hansberry created the play "A Raisin in the Sun". A Raisin in the Sun recounts an anecdote about The Youngers who is a poor African American family living on the Southside of Chicago. A chance to escape from neediness comes as a $10,000 extra security watch that the female authority of the family (Lena/Mama) gets upon her significant other 's passing. Lena 's kids, Walter and Beneatha, each have plans with the cash. The most established child, Walter (a man of 35 with a spouse and a youthful child), wishes so anxiously to put resources into an alcohol store. The more youthful sister, Beneatha, presently an undergrad, needs to utilize the cash for therapeutic school. Lena has arranged too for the cash which is to purchase a house