Note that when Beneatha’s African suitor, Asagai, is on his way to the Younger apartment, Beneatha gives her mother a hasty briefmg on African history, coaching her mother in conversational protocol. She tells Mama that Asagai is from Nigeria, which Mama immediately confuses with Liberia. After correcting her, Beneatha begs Mama not to make stereotypical comments about Africans and tells her that the only thing that most people seem to know about Africa has been learned from Tarzan movies. Beneatha berates those missionaries who, like Mama, are more concerned with changing the African’s religion than in overthrowing colonial rule. Afrocentrism, or the expression of pride in one’s African heritage, so popular among the black youth of the 1990s, was, in 1959, a little-known phenomenon. But Lorraine Hansberry’s affinity for all things African resulted from the people of greatness that she was acquainted with through her family.
Two years after its Broadway premiere, “A Raisin in the Sun” appeared in movie theaters, starring Sidney Poitier and Ruby Dee. In the trailer for the 1961 film, the producer David Susskind provides a lengthy introduction that describes the awards the play received and the importance of its story before any scenes from the movie are shown. We match this scene from “Raisin” with a 2013 article on the present state and persistence of housing discrimination in the United States.
Timeless Themes A Raisin In The Sun By Lorraine Hansberry
The house was “protected” by a racially restrictive covenant, which legally prevented ownership or occupancy of property by blacks. The covenant was enforced, the Hansberry family was evicted and Carl Hansberry sued. The case made it to the United States Supreme Court; Hansberry v. Lee , however, did not overturn the constitutionality of racially restrictive covenants. It wasn’t until 1948, in Shelley v. Kraemer, that the court would find such covenants discriminatory. The play remains a potent touchstone, still speaking to viewers about race, gender roles, family, hope and desperation, capitalism, the American dream and so much more. The 2010 Bruce Norris play Clybourne Park depicts the white family that sold the house to the Youngers.
Indeed, he is like a man sent to this part of the world as a punishment. He admits that at times life on the farm has made him “crazy with lonesomeness” . He is refined in a world that does not recognize that refinement as anything but a weakness. Walter’s understanding of this American dream marks the center of the conflict in the play.
Movie Analysis Of A Raisin In The Sun
Walter Lee shows a type of pride that could be called “manly” pride. A Raisin in the Sun realistically presents the struggles of the oppressed class against a privileged majority working to maintain society’s status quo. Hansberry also addresses the personal crutches we sometimes use to justify our own failures. Her main theme focuses on the power of the family structure and the need to stand up to injustice.
- Walter chooses the liquor business to make personal wealth and to provide for his family.
- Aside from the thesis statements for “Raisin in the Sun” above, these quotes alone can act as essay questions or study questions as they are all relevant to the text in an important way.
- Poems by Langston Hughes will also be incorporated in the paper to better explain the black experiences before the II and Civil Rights Movement.
- The play portrays a lot of different things through the characters actions.
Conflict is one of the underlying themes in the play, which was written by Lorraine Hansberry, it helps to tell the story and explain the situation that the Younger family is in. Of the Youngers has been before they have learned about anticipated changes. You can also explore the subject of family ties and affection as a possible theme unless you have already been given a prompt to write on.
He decides to degrade in his futile efforts to achieve his goals. Racism in A Raisin in the Sun is almost sickening to most people and i hope that more people see this play to help spread the word about how African American people were treated in the 1950s. Racism is still alive today through communities that want one color out of their neighborhood which is not right either.
Themes
Though Ruth is content with their lot, Walter is not, and desperately wishes to become wealthy. His plan is to invest in a liquor store in partnership with Willy and Bobo, his street-smart acquaintances. Is a play about Walter Lee Younger and his family who live in a small apartment in Chicago and chase after their dreams, written by Lorraine Hansberry. In conclusion, Hansberry shows Walters deep emotions by using punctuation, stage directions, and diction of dreams.