Lindner on stage is How does Hansberry introduce the theme of hopes and dreams in the play, A Raisin in the Sun? The long-standing appeal of A Raisin in the Sun lies in the fact that the family's dreams and aspirations for a better life are not confined to their race, but can be identified with by people of all backgrounds. Even though what that "better A Raisin in the Sun study guide contains a biography of Lorraine Hansberry, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.
A Raisin in the Sun essays are academic essays for citation. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry.
Remember me. Forgot your password? Buy Study Guide. Les Blancs. The Drinking Gourd. The Sign in Sidney Brustein's Window. Les Negres. Tennessee Williams' Sweet Bird of Youth. Travis sleeps on the living room couch. Ruth and Walter Lee's bedroom is actually a small alcove just off the kitchen, originally intended to be a "breakfast room" for a smaller, wealthier family. Mama and Beneatha share the only actual bedroom of this "apartment.
Ruth appears to be annoyed with Walter, although she does not openly admit it. At first, Walter seems too preoccupied with thoughts about the insurance check to consider what might be troubling Ruth. Their conversation revolves around money and the lack thereof; even young Travis is concerned with money, as he asks, "Check coming tomorrow? Walter admonishes Ruth for telling Travis that they cannot give him fifty cents, and we are immediately more sympathetic to Walter than to Ruth, for their dialogue is reminiscent of the mother in Kathryn Forbes' play I Remember Mama, who insists that children not be told when there is no money because it makes them worry.
Forbes' play revolves around a mother's lie to her children about a nonexistent bank account. In Raisin, not only does Walter give Travis the fifty cents that he has requested, but Walter throws in an additional fifty cents — none of which he can afford.
Travis never knows that Walter cannot afford to give him the money. After Travis leaves, Walter eats his breakfast; then, ready to leave for work, he tells Ruth that he needs carfare to get to work. In this scene, note that Ruth's annoyance with Walter is evident in the manner in which she chooses to wake him up. She is "out of sorts" about something that is not yet clear, although it appears to have something to do with Walter.
She asks Walter what kind of eggs he wants, yet she ignores his request for "not scrambled" and scrambles the eggs anyway. The characters are so real in this scene that it is difficult to take anyone's side. When Walter expresses a desire to have the insurance money in order to invest in a business venture, he makes sense — even in his argument with Beneatha. Beneatha is a college student who will require a considerable amount of money for medical school, but the reader wonders if Beneatha's dream for her future is more important than Walter's.
As far as we can tell, Beneatha has been given every opportunity to develop her potential. One of the key focuses in this scene is Mama's concern for her family; it especially emphasizes her all-consuming love for her grandson, Travis, as she makes excuses for the careless way in which he made his bed, while re-doing it correctly for him.
He implies that her hairstyle is too American and unnatural, and he wonders how it got that way. He teases her a bit about being very serious about finding her identity, particularly her African identity, through him.
Asagai obviously cares for Beneatha very much, and he wonders why Beneatha does not have the same feeling for him. She explains that she is looking for more than storybook love.
She wants to become an independent and liberated woman. Mama comes into the room, and Beneatha introduces her to Asagai. Finally, the check arrives. Walter returns home and wants to talk about his liquor store plans. Ruth wants to discuss her pregnancy with him and becomes upset when he will not listen.
She shuts herself into their bedroom. Mama sits down with Walter who is upset by—and ashamed of—his poverty, his job as a chauffeur, and his lack of upward mobility. Finally, Mama tells him that Ruth is pregnant and that she fears that Ruth is considering having an abortion. Walter does not believe that Ruth would do such a thing until Ruth comes out of the bedroom to confirm that she has made a down payment on the service.
This scene includes two phone calls: one for Walter from Willy about the liquor store investment and the other for Beneatha from Joseph Asagai, her good friend and fellow intellectual. These phone calls serve parallel functions for those who receive them and demonstrate what is important to both of the characters: Walter is waiting to move quickly on the investment, while Beneatha cannot wait to see Asagai and introduce him to her family.
While most of their dreams involve the acquisition of some markers of success, such as a home, large cars, and privileged education, Beneatha has to begin by first ridding herself of the bugs that plague her current situation. The interaction between Beneatha and Asagai reveals how serious Beneatha is about finding her identity.
Beneatha does not want to assimilate into, or become successful in, the dominant white culture of the s. Yet while she wants to break free of conforming to the white ideal, she still wants to acclimate herself to an educated American life.
Indeed, her seeking of her roots in Africa to forge her identity even though her family has been in America for five generations precedes the New African movement of the s.
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