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A Raisin in the Sun

            "A Raisin in the Sun" by Lorraine Hansberry is a revolutionary work for its time. It is one of the first plays involving a black family that tried to focus on a mostly black audience in the United States during the Nineteen fifties and sixties. Before this play was released the roles from black people on stage were mostly small and often times not serious roles. Hansberry put blacks in important and serious roles for one of the first times in America's long history. The play makes the reader think about the racial issues of its day and how tensions between "White" and "Colored" people influenced the Younger family. One of the most influenced characters in the play was Walter Lee Younger. He had to make decisions for his family based on his past history and the pressures that the "White" people were putting on him. .
             Walter Lee knew that because he was a black man from a poor neighborhood in Chicago that he would need to catch a few breaks to make some money and impress his family. He tries to do this by taking an insurance check that the family received and investing it in a liquor store with two friends. One of these "friends" ends up running off with the money never to be seen again.
             The biggest conflict between a white man and Walter occurs towards the end of the play. Walter's mother, Lena Younger, used a portion of the insurance check to put down a large payment on a home in an all white neighborhood. At first Walter was against moving out of their small and overcrowded apartment. Walter thinks that they should stay where they are and he should used the money to open his liquor store. After Walter losses the money for his store a white mane named Karl Lindner offers to pay the family a large amount of money if they do not move into the white neighborhood. Walter does not tell any of his family members and contemplates to himself whether to accept the money and stay in the small apartment in the "ghetto" or to start a new life in the white neighborhood.


Essays Related to A Raisin in the Sun

1. Themes in A Raisin in the Sun

The story, "A Raisin the Sun" is a direct reference to Hughes poem. ... Walters "deferred" dream "dried up like a raisin in the sun.... This showed that like a raisin sitting in the sun the good parts of it begin to evaporate and then everything becomes dry. ... A Raisin in the Sun showed us the struggle of racial equality and obtaining the American Dream. ... Today racial equality isn't a big issue like the era of "A Raisin in the Sun". ...

  • Word Count: 1328
  • Approx Pages: 5
  • Grade Level: High School

2. A Raisin in the Sun

A Raisin in the Sun, written by Lorraine Hansberry, was written perhaps with some personal experience. ... Another sign of family strength is when Beneatha denies Walter as her brother (A Raisin in the Sun, 907). ... Lindner's offer appeals to him (A Raisin in the Sun, 909). ... Walter gave it away anyway though because he thought it would help the family (A Raisin in the Sun, 897). ... Bennie felt like low class, and didn't feel she could be a doctor anymore (Raisin in the Sun, 901). ...

  • Word Count: 1169
  • Approx Pages: 5
  • Grade Level: High School

3. Raisin in the Sun

A Raisin in the Sun These fifteen pages were wonderfully written. ... A Raisin in the Sun In this chapter I grew a sort of a dislike for mama. ... A Raisin in the Sun This section surprised me because of how irresponsible Ruth was acting. ... A Raisin in the Sun . ... A Raisin in the Sun Once again, this chapter represented a family who didn't have their eyes open. ...

  • Word Count: 905
  • Approx Pages: 4
  • Grade Level: High School

4. A raisin in the sun

A comparison between the life of Lorraine Hansberry and her Play "A Raisin in the Sun" What is it that caused Lorraine Hansberry to portray a family like the Younger's in " A Raisin in the Sun"? ... In fact " A Raisin in the sun", and "Native Son" start off the same way with an alarm clock ringing. ... "A Raisin in the Sun" is the story of a lower class black family living on the south side of Chicago. ... There are many aspects of Lorraine Hansberry's life that seem to be relived in a "Raisin in the Sun". ... "A Raisin in the Sun" is considered one of the greatest Americ...

  • Word Count: 1699
  • Approx Pages: 7
  • Grade Level: High School

5. A Raisin in the Sun

A Raisin in the Sun A Raisin in the Sun contains many themes. ... Two themes Lorraine Hansberry uses in A Raisin in the Sun is that dreams can either save or destroy a person or in this case a family and the importance of family values and morals. ... Lorraine Hansberry put her personal views into A Raisin in the Sun. ... A Raisin in the Sun displays a great recurring theme in life that many times the good of the few has to be sacrificed through the needs and propagation of the group. ...

  • Word Count: 501
  • Approx Pages: 2
  • Grade Level: High School

6. A Raisin In the Sun

A Raisin In The Sun Lorraine Hansberry wrote the play "A Raisin In The Sun", it was produced on March 11, 1959 in Ethel Barrymore Theatre located in New York. "A Raisin In The Sun" was the first drama by a produced African American women on Broadway. ... For instance a sun raises then sets. "A Raisin In The Sun", shows a decisive portrait of African American life in the mid-1950s. ... But when the movie started out the sun was up, in the middle it was gloomy out side the window, and at the end of the movie the sun had came back out again. ...

  • Word Count: 886
  • Approx Pages: 4
  • Grade Level: High School

7. Raisin in the sun

A Raisin in the Sun" is set at in an area where racism was still occurring. ... Throughout the play A Raisin in the Sun, Lorraine Hansberry criticizes the racial and discriminatory climate of America in the 1950s and early 60s. ... Speaking of the United States, Adler states, "A Raisin in the Sun is a moving drama about securing one's dignity within a system that discriminates against, even enslaves, its racial minorities.". ... A Raisin in the Sun deals with many issues but none more than Prejudice's--the act of pre-judging something. ...

  • Word Count: 786
  • Approx Pages: 3
  • Grade Level: High School

8. A Raisin in the Sun

A Raisin in the Sun In Lorraine Hansberry's A Raisin in the Sun, the author uses the African American Younger family to represent a struggle for the pursuit of the American Dream. ... In A Raisin in the Sun, Lorraine Hansberry uses the main characters and their dreams as a means of demonstrating a pursuit for the American Dream. ... Throughout A Raisin in the Sun, Lorraine Hansberry uses the characters as a way to follow the struggles and harshness of an African American family's desire to achieve the American Dream. ...

  • Word Count: 970
  • Approx Pages: 4
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

9. Raisin in the Sun

Lorraine Hansberry's, "A Raisin in the Sun" focuses in the struggles of the Youngers, and illustrates how nothing is stronger than family ties. ... Once again, family ties proves itself to be the theme of "A Raisin in the Sun." ... A Raisin in the Sun displays a great recurring theme in life that many times the good of the few has to be sacrificed through the needs and propagation of the group. ...

  • Word Count: 867
  • Approx Pages: 3
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

10. A Raisin In The Sun

A Raisin in the Sun Title - A Raisin in the Sun Author - Lorraine Hansberry Genre - Drama Copyright Date - 1958, 1986 by Robert Nemiroff, as an unpublished work 1959, 1966, 1987, 1988 by Robert Nemiroff Setting - The setting was after WWII and the present (1958), in the south side of Chicago. ... Similarities in Characters, Setting, Plot, or Theme to other Books I have Read - A book that is similar to A Raisin in the Sun is, To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee. The book is very dramatic like A Raisin in the Sun. ... This book has conflicts of hatred and love, but has humoro...

  • Word Count: 1553
  • Approx Pages: 6
  • Grade Level: High School

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