Racial Disccrimination in a Raisin in the Sun Essay

Another theme and issue that arrives from the play A Raisin in the Sun, by Lorraine Hansberry, is racism. During the 1950’s blacks and whites were segregated. The house the Younger’s purchased was in the Clybourne Park neighborhood, an all white neighborhood. When Lena told the family they were moving to Clybourne Park they stood with amazement. “Mama, there ain’t no colored people in Clybourne Park” (p.734). The family heard of other colored families’ houses being set on fire in this neighborhood, they were concerned that the same thing would happen to them.

The drama A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry, shows the life of the Youngers, an African-American family living on the Southside of Chicago in the 1950s. In the beginning, the Youngers are about to receive an insurance check for $10,000. This money comes from the deceased Mr. Younger’s life insurance policy. Each of the adult members of the family has an idea as to what he or she would like to do with this money. Mama, wants to buy a house to fulfill a dream she shared with her husband. Mama’s son, Walter Lee, would rather use the money to invest in a liquor store with his friends. He believes that the investment will solve the family’s financial problems forever. Beneatha, Walter’s sister and Mama’s daughter, wants to use the money for her medical school tuition. Ruth, Walter’s wife, discovers that she is pregnant, but

Lorraine Hansberry’s play, A Raisin in the Sun, centers on an African American family in the late 1950s. Hansberry directs her work towards specifically the struggles faced by African Americans during the late 1950s. Through the dialogue and actions of her characters, she encourages not only a sense of pride in heritage, but a national and self-pride in African Americans as well.

The story of this play is simple and the majority of African-Americans faced such issues in the 1950’s, living on the south side of Chicago, struggles with poverty, dignity and dreams of a better life. Wanting better for your children and trying to fit in, while maintaining family values. A Raisin in the Sun is an excellent example of the relationship between family values and conflict. In this play it portrays: values and purpose of dreams, the need to fight for racial discrimination and the importance of family.

Set in the 1950’s, “A Raisin in the Sun” is about an African-American family, the Youngers, living in Chicago. The Youngers have received a check for $10,000 from the late Mr. Youngers life insurance policy. Each family member has their own idea of what to do with the money but the main character, mama, wants to buy a house because it was a dream that she shared with her late husband. As you can imagine, this results in turmoil for the family. Mama’s son Walter wants to invest the money into a bar. Mama’s daughter Beneatha wants to use the money to cover her costly medical school tuition. The turmoil continues to grow when mama makes a down payment on a house that just so happens to be in a predominantly white neighborhood. Shortly afterwards, a man named Mr.

African-Americans have experienced racism since the 1600s and throughout American history. However, not many books have been able to display the ethnic ignorance that white people have towards blacks. One of the more successful stories is A Raisin in the Sun shares a compelling story about an African-American family during the 1900s and offers many themes about social class and race. In A Raisin in the Sun, a negative legacy is left on modern drama due to the many examples of poverty and the message of money in the novel; though some people may believe that the play was an accurate depiction of the African-American lifestyle and their culture, they are wrong to believe this impractical belief because it leads to many white people assuming

A Raisin in the Sun was written by Lorraine Hansberry and is a play about an African American family who are struggling in the 1950’s to keep the family together. Although the play is portrayed in the 50’s many issues like the economy, racism, and family dynamics the characters had to face; these issues are still issues in the 21st century.

First, starting off with the story A Raisin in the Sun, This story takes place in 1959 ,this is also the time when segregation was still around. The story tells about a black family, known as the Younger, who live in the south side of Chicago. The Youngers live in an apartment, but there are five of them and they live in a two bedroom apartment. This family is also very poor, and they try to save as much as they can. The families dream are all different but they are also very much similar.  For example, the man of the house, Walter Younger dreams to live the good life, like white people did who were wealthy as well as having his family to support him in everything he does. This is stated in Act 1 Scene 1. All the dreams and wishes of the Youngers are to live in a better house and to have a better lives than they do now thought out the play. By the end of the play they all realize that money is not going not going to make them happy, but love is the only thing the family needs to be happy.

Between the 1930s and the 1960s, things had gotten slightly better. Black people were no longer being lynched or killed, and white people had finally started to treat them like humans. However, there was a catch. During this time, black people were considered second-class citizens. Raisin in the Sun and “Hidden Figures” are two pieces of evidence why. As stated before, though they are fictional, the stories are based off real events and real experiences that black people had to go through during the time. Raisin in the Sun is a play written in the late 1950s that details the life of a black family after their husband/father dies and the insurance money they receive because of it. For example, in the midst of the story, Lena Younger, the leader of the household (and whose husband died), decided to buy the family a new house. The problem is, she chooses a house in a all-white neighborhood. Their new neighbors apparently had an issue with

A Raisin in the Sun was a play written in the late 1950’s analyzing the cruel effects of racism amongst the Younger family. The younger family suffers from racial discrimination within their living space, place of employment, and the housing industry. Racism has been going on for a very long time in the United States and will always continue to exist. Racism has not only led to political but also social issues. "A Raisin in the Sun confronted Whites for an acknowledgement that a black family could be fully human, 'just like us."(qtd. White fear.) The setting took place in the ghetto, south of Chicago where mainly African Americans settled. In this division, apartments and houses were overly priced, crowded and poorly maintained. Crime rates were extremely high and most families lived in poverty. Due to segregated housing, it was a daily struggle for black families who had hopes in leaving the ghetto for better lives.

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

Racism is a belief where one race thinks their superior than other race or treating people differently because of their race. Race has and still does affected many people in America because of the color of their skin. In the society past had racism but it continues on today. A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry is a play about a dark skin family who has opportunities but has less chances of achieving them because the racist society. Race has a lot to do in Raising in the Sun.

‘Raisin in the Sun’ by Lorraine Hansberry has demonstrated its efficacy in illustrating the plight of African Americans living in the 1950s through the roles of characters illustrated in the play. The play is about the life of an African American family known as the Youngers, who live in Chicago. The family's anticipation and receiving of a $10,000 check makes each of the family members to develop dreams and goals associated with how each one of them would utilize their father's insurance money.

Lorraine Hansberry, the author of the play A Raisin in the Sun, indicates that she had always felt a need to put her life experiences in the black neighborhood in writing. In his book, she depicts in a realistic manner of the African-American life. The play portrays black characters combined with themes and conflicts naturally and realistically. A Raisin in the Sun provided a twist in the American art as it highlighted on key issues which were unfolding in the U.S in the 1950s. Despite the economic boom experienced after World War II, there was growing racial tension and domestic tension.

Racial inequality has to be one of the top issues in the world; it seems as if it cannot be solved. There are many who fight for racial equality and believe they have won however racism and inequality still exists. Usually the main targets of racial discrimination are the working class African Americans; this issue prevents them from bettering their lives. In A Raisin in the Sun the author, Lorraine Hansberry analyzes the lives of the oppressed younger family; she molds her literature by showing that racism and classism are the reasons why they cannot accomplish their goals. It is understood that this play gives the insinuation that racial equality leads to a better future, which is what the younger family longs for. The characters Walter,