So wrote the new york times and the washington post respectively of. Read a plot overview of the entire play or a chapter by chapter summary and analysis. In the play, a raisin in the sun, we were introduced to many characters. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of a raisin in the sun by lorraine hansberry. As the play opens, the younger family is eagerly awaiting an. She is at her most depressed and angry with george, her pompous, affluent africanamerican boyfriend. The character of ruth younger in a raisin in the sun from. Walter younger can be really hard to get along with. The plot revolves around him and the actions that he takes, and his character evolves the. Lindner arrives at the younger household, he is extremely shy and timid, not threatening or abrasive or loud. She has a keen sense of humor, an ear for accurate speech and compassion for people. See there, that just goes to show you what women understand about the world.
It was one of the first plays to describe black characters, themes and conflicts in an unbiased and true manner. She is at her happiest with asagai, her nigerian boyfriend, who has nicknamed her alaiyo, which means one for whom breadfoodis not enough. In the poem, part of which serves as the plays epigraph. Lorraine hansberrys 1950s play a raisin in the sun also identifies characteristics of modernism through the everyday struggles of urban and industrial housing as well as segregation. Characters walter as mama s only son, ruth s defiant husband, travis s caring father, and beneathas belligerent brother, walter serves as both protagonist and antagonist of the play. The a raisin in the sun characters covered include. Ruths character is also highlighted in this moment. Baby, dont nothing happen for you in this world less you pay somebody off. See a complete list of the characters in a raisin in the sun and indepth analyses of walter, mama, beneatha, and asagai. In spite of his manipulative nature, however, travis is a likeable child because, although he might be mischievous at times, he is always mannerly. A raisin in the sun summary notes by stacie abrams on prezi.
He seems sheltered and overprotected by the numerous adults in the household, yet he is a street kid, drawn to the life of his ghetto neighborhood. His journey takes him from total jerk, obsessed with getrichquick schemes, to a man worthy of respect. Find all the books, read about the author, and more. A raisin in the sun portrays a few weeks in the life of the youngers, an africanamerican family living on the south side of chicago in the 1950s.
When mama reminisces about her life with big walter, she speaks of him with admiration, although the audience might question mamas tolerance of some of his past behavior. Shes a downtoearth, hardworking black woman who doesnt suffer. Every character in this play has a different dream. She gives him the money even though hes totally undermined her in front of their son. An analysis of the book a raisin in the sun urgent paper. A raisin in the sun characters from litcharts the creators of sparknotes. Perfect for acing essays, tests, and quizzes, as well as for writing lesson plans. A raisin in the sun part 2 starring danny glover and. Hansberry noted that her play introduced details of black life to the overwhelmingly white broadway audiences, while director richards observed that it was the first play to which large numbers of. A raisin in the sun is a classic play about one familys hopes and dreams in 1950s america. Of course, beneatha totally disagrees, and this becomes yet another strike against george in her book. As mamas only son, ruths defiant husband, traviss caring father, and beneathas belligerent brother, walter serves as both protagonist and antagonist of the play.
Nicknamed bennie, beneatha is mamas daughter and walter lee. Parents need to know that a raisin in the sun eloquently portrays the life struggles of an africanamerican family living on chicagos south side in the 1950s. Character analysis of a raisin in the sun the male protagonist of this story is walter lee younger, an african american, who plays the roles of a son, husband, father, and brother. In walter younger, lorraine hansberry shows how poverty and racism can twist and depress people, turning them. In a raisin in the sun, certain characters change and grow as a result of their experiences the greatest amount of change is in walter. The main characters within the story include mama, walter lee mamas son, ruth walters wife, and beneatha mamas daughter. Free download or read online a raisin in the sun pdf epub book.
He says all kinds of mean things to ruth, his wife, and is even short with his longsuffering mother, lena. A raisin in the sun characters from litcharts the creators. Big walter is another character whom we never meet and only learn about through the dialogue of others. A raisin in the sun by lorraine hansberry is a play about an african american family striving to fulfill the american dream. In lorraine hansberrys a raisin in the sun, the characters of beneatha and walter younger share the traits of being determined and ambitious. Professor kristen over of northeastern illinois university provides an indepth analysis of the plot, characters, symbols, and themes in lorraine hansberrys play a raisin in the sun. Feb 17, 2012 interviews and photos of valencia colleges production of a raisin in the sun. Study 11 terms a raisin in the sun characters flashcards. May 27, 20 just like the younger characters in the play, my students have been somewhat sheltered, and for some, this play opens their eyes. She wants to use her husbands insurance moneybas a down payment on a house with a backyard to fulfill her dream for her family to move up in the world.
The lindner character, although basically a flat character, is still developed by hansberry as a human being and not simply a stereotype of a bigot. Maybe it just sags like a heavy load or does it explode poem by. Lorraine hansberrys a raisin in the sun society and family. Not only were successful women playwrights rare at the. Characters work at subservient jobs walter is a chauffeur, and his mother and sister clean houses, grapple with the impact this has on their selfesteem, and face racial prejudice. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one. A raisin in the sun by lorraine hansberry overdrive.
A raisin in the sun part 2 starring danny glover and esther rolle. A proud woman, lena younger does not have much material wealth, but she walks tall, exudes dignity, and carries herself, as hansberry says, with the noble bearing of the. This study guide and infographic for lorraine hansberrys a raisin in the sun offer summary and analysis on themes, symbols, and other literary devices found in the text. If people can be divided into three groups those who make things happen, those who watch things happen, and those who wonder what happened apply each of these to the three characters in raisin who respectively prove that this is so. Oct 25, 2010 a raisin in the sun focuses on dreams, one of the most universal elements to life. Hansberry incorporates the universal dream of being successful in the plot in order to appeal to a general audience.
Ruth acts as peacemaker in most of the explosive family situations. Ruths close relationship with her mother in law and with her new family is comparable to the biblical ruth, who tells her mother in law, naomi, that she will travel with her wherever she goes and that your people shall be my people. An analysis of the book a raisin in the sun grades hero. A raisin in the sun the unfilmed original screenplay. A raisin in the sun in the book a raisin in the sun by larraine hansberry, walter and mama are the main characters that have a significant influence on the whole plot of the book. Cirignano states, each of us is a book waiting to be written, and that book, if written, results in a person explained. Walter younger is a dreamer and is very immature at the. A raisin in the sun was first produced in 1959 and anticipates many of the issues which were to divide american culture during the decade of the 1960s. A raisin in the sun character analysis 894 words bartleby.
A raisin in the sun essays are academic essays for citation. The plot revolves around him and the actions that he takes, and his character evolves the most during the course of the play. Because beneatha is the most educated of the youngers, she sometimes seems to be obnoxious and selfcentered. Walter would like to invest in a liquor store with friends. A raisin in the sun what happens to a dream deferred. Beneatha younger sister beneatha, also called benny, is the youngest adult member of the younger family. Throughout the play, she searches for her identity. The matriach of the family, she is religious, moral, and maternal. A raisin in the sun, a play by lorraine hansberry, is the story of a lowerclass african american family living on the southside of chicago during the 1950s. Character analysis a raisin in the sun 898 words bartleby.
A list of all the characters in a raisin in the sun. A raisin in the sun by lorraine hansberry characters. Not only does she struggle to maintain her own household, but she goes out to work in the households of rich white people as well. The a raisin in the sun quotes below are all either spoken by ruth younger or refer to ruth younger.
Character analysis of a raisin of the sun essay 845 words 4 pages. Editions of a raisin in the sun by lorraine hansberry. Ruth is walter lees wife, a deeply emotional and old fashioned woman. The first edition of the novel was published in 1959, and was written by lorraine hansberry. Ruth is pregnant and goes to a female gynecologist to put a down payment on having her unborn child aborted. Raisin actually tells the story of walter lee granted that his is a story greatly influenced by mama. Unlike the biblical story, though, no mention is ever made of ruth youngers parents or siblings or background. Custom character analysis projects on lorraine hansberrys novel are available from the writers at paper masters. We learned that the lee family was a low income family and if they had something that kept them going it was simple hope, from that one day they would get a better home, become a successful doctor, go to the best school and lastly buy a liquor store. Although walter makes the worst mistakes out of any other character in the play, he also undergoes the greatest transformation. Need help on characters in lorraine hansberrys a raisin in the sun. Welcome,you are looking at books for reading, the a raisin in the sun the unfilmed original screenplay, you will able to read or download in pdf or epub books and notice some of author may have lock the live reading for some of country. Character analysis in a raisin in the sun student name institutional affiliation character analysis in a raisin in the sun introduction in the course of writing literature, it is often ubiquitous for playwrights, novelists and other kinds of authors to showcase themes and styles through characters.
In this lesson, we learned about the different characters and their. Evaluation of a raisin in the sun college essays ganjab. A raisin in the sun was the first play written by a black woman to be produced on broadway, as well as the first with a black director, mr. A raisin in the sun characters lorraine hansberry this study guide consists of approximately 55 pages of chapter summaries, quotes, character analysis, themes, and more everything you need to sharpen your knowledge of a raisin in the sun. His family is really well off and are perfectly happy to assimilate into white america. Walter is an obnoxious character, and he has placed himself first before everything.
Walter lee younger in his middle thirties, he is the husband of ruth, father of travis, brother of beneatha, and son of lena mama younger. It is the difference in dreams of the characters which stimulates the major conflict of the play. Lorraine hansberry author, robert nemiroff introduction. It is as if history is conspiring to make the play a classic.
For most of the first act, hes nasty to just about every other character in the play. Mama wants to buy a house in a nicer neighborhood with the money which was the dream her husband and her shared. The matriarch of the younger family, lena, commonly referred to as mama, is walter lee and beneathas mother and travis grandmother. Despite her true love for family and her husband, she has difficulty dealing with walters mistreatment of her. Litcharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in a raisin in the sun, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work. Mama is the head of the family and has the decision to decide to what she.
Lorraine hansberry, the playwright, was an unknown dramatist who achieved unprecedented success when her play became a broadway sensation. Pdf a raisin in the sun book by lorraine hansberry free. Robert coleman, new york mirror a raisin in the sun has vigor as well as veracity. She studied at the university of wisconsin for two years and moved to new york in 1950 to study and then write. Segregation is an intrinsic political injustice that is constantly questioned by hansberry in this work. Fitzgeralds 1925 novel the great gatsby, is a good example of modernism for it centers around the characters and their sense of isolation. Raisin in the sun compare and contrast freebooksummary.
The main character of mama is an african american domestic worker whose husband has died and left her a insurance policy. I will go home and much of what i will have to say will seem. Walter works as a chauffeur and drinks a bit too much at times. She married in 1953 and separated in 1957 after privately coming out as a lesbian. At the plays beginning, mama is waiting on the insurance check to arrive. The book was published in multiple languages including english, consists of 160 pages and is available in hardcover format. Looks like bachelor number two is going to get the ax. Very lowkey, ruth reveals her strongest emotions only when she learns of the. Start your 48hour free trial to unlock this a raisin in the sun study guide and get instant. A raisin in the sun character list walter lee younger. Discuss the ways in which the setting of raisin has a profound effect upon two of the characters.
Lorraine hansberry, africanamerican playwright, was born into a relatively wealthymiddle class family in chicago in 1930 and was raised with the belief in fighting for injustice. Walter lee younger, beneatha younger bennie, lena younger mama, ruth younger, travis younger, joseph asagai, george murchison, mr. The main characters of this plays, classics story are. Dreams possess great importance in a raisin in the sun, with the plays name coming from a 1951 langston hughes poem titled montage of a dream deferred. Happiness depends on how you feel towards your loved ones which in lorraine hansberrys play, a raisin in the sun walters obsession with money often caused him to act unkindly to his loved ones. Learn exactly what happened in this chapter, scene, or section of a raisin in the sun and what it means. She favors her african suitor over her rich boyfriend, much to the puzzlement of her family. The effect of segregation is seen clearly here as being separate but unequal as the family struggle to live in their designated and confined space. Benny attends the local university and loves to experiment with new things such as photography, horseback riding, and playing the. A raisin in the sun is a 1959 awardwinning play by lorraine hansberry, notable for being the first play by an africanamerican woman to appear on broadway. A summary of symbols in lorraine hansberrys a raisin in the sun.
The youngers financial difficulties make it impossible for ruth to just work in her own home. A raisin in the sun is a play by lorraine hansberry that was first performed in 1959. The female characters in each literary work are attempting to define themselves as africanamerican women while also trying to define themselves through the issues of poverty and racism. Character analysis ruth younger a raisin in the sun. Introduction this is a raisin in the sun study guide. A raisin in the sun was one of the first plays that presented viewers with a true realistic description of an african americans life. Beneatha is an attractive college student who provides a young, independent, feminist perspective, and her desire to become a doctor demonstrates her great ambition. The theme of money in a raisin in the sun from litcharts.
A raisin in the sun mass market paperback november 29, 2004. A raisin in the sun is a play that takes place in the predominantly black south side of chicago during the time of racism in the midtolate 1950s. As walter is thinking about himself all the time, mama is excellent and strict. As a character, then, ruth exposes the difficulties of being a workingclass mother.
Although mama is a strong motivational force in this drama, she is not its focal point, as many earlier critics assumed. There are three major female characters in both alice walkers everyday use and lorraine hansberrys a raisin in the sun. Unlike the biblical story, though, no mention is ever made of. The theme of dreams in a raisin in the sun from litcharts. Miss hansberry has etched her characters with understanding, and told her story with dramatic impact. The characters in lorraine hansberrys a raisin in the sun are rich and diverse, giving the reader insight into the african american community in the urban north in the years after world war ii. Try one of the apps below to open or edit this item.
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