Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun, Essay Example

A dream is a desire that anyone wishes to come true during their existence and beyond. The American dream can be viewed in a variety of ways, but its structure remains the same. While many people think of American Dream, they see happy families that achieve their goals collectively. The United States dream is founded on the principles of liberty, fairness, and economic prosperity. The Family in A Raisin in the Sun has various visions, and each of them believes that every goal is far more significant than their families’ aspirations. The majority of the Younger relatives face challenges in reaching their goals, and that only a handful can succeed. The importance and meaning of the Younger family’s personal agendas and ideals are essential to everyone due to the extreme impact they have. Yet, their overarching American dream becomes a family joy. Some people may be fortunate to achieve their dreams, while others may not get a chance to fulfill their dreams.

Beneatha’s behavior in the play A Raisin in the Sun proves Hansberry’s views concerning the real world. But on the other hand, not everyone has the same desire to better society. Walter Lee, in the play, contradicts Hansberry’s viewpoint because he lacks Beneatha’s desire to serve society (May, Theresa, 127). Cooper claims in the essay that the protagonists in A Raisin in the Sun share a desire to better their world. Even though the play contains several unfortunate incidents related to the family’s financial status and ethnicity, certain characters demonstrate that they have the potential to develop into something more significant. The Younger family strives to be productive, but it appears that family members have differing perspectives on what constitutes “success.”

Beneatha defines success as accomplishing one’s objectives and being content with one’s work. She is adamant about becoming a doctor, which is seen as a socially idealistic act since she wants to support people who have been hurt. Since she is dedicating her life to helping those who are already fortunate than herself, her desire to be a doctor in Africa introduces the theme of social idealism, which creates an obligation to change society. The current world has observed that most of the students accepted into significant universities are the fortunate ones. Their luck depends on their history and legacies instead of the usual requirements and pass marks before admissions to such learning institutions.

In’ A raisin in the sun’ which a play in the year 1959, the blacks were not good in the economy since there was a lot of racial segregation. There was frequent involvement of discrimination and prejudices that caused the African Americans to put aside their ambitions and dreams to deal with the problems that may come along during their lifetime. The Great Depression started that worsened the economic situation of the black people, which were not doing well at all. They lost their jobs, and the rate of unemployment increased more than the white Americans. During the programs used to assist the American people, the African American people were mainly sidelined and mostly got little aid compared to the white people. In this play, the African Americans were not fortunate even in receiving aid, while the whites who had at least some platforms to succeed were provided with more aid (Hansberry, Lorraine). The whites achieve their dreams at one end while the blacks who were less fortunate struggle to achieve their dreams on the other hand only because of their color. The play is well portrayed as the younger family experiences discrimination that hinders their success in life.

Each individual of the Younger family values their dreams due to the extreme impact, but it is also the family vision of owning a home that binds them all. Mama persuaded Walter after the narrative that homeownership was necessary for the family since renting a house for their entire lives was intolerable. Big Walter would have to battle and struggle to realize his dream of purchasing a home that became the family’s dream as well. Many people face difficulties in their daily lives; nevertheless, it does not imply that they are doomed to be unhappy. Almost everybody faces challenges that must be resolved to remain satisfied. Persons will still be fortunate despite facing difficulties and challenges. Lorraine Hansberry’s novel A Raisin in the Sun depicts the hardships of a deprived Black Family residing in Chicago. The family lives in a period where prejudice is still alive, and the five people in the family share a tiny apartment. The play can be viewed in the current life where families that are well off in terms of financial aid have platforms and opportunities to get into better colleges such as Harvard since they will be able to pay the required fees to be able to complete their studies which currently expensive at this era.

Young people always had a different opinion about their American dream. Their dreams took long and had many obstacles every day of their lives.  The family dreams were also different, which meant everyone had their own goals to achieve. The dream of Walter’s mother had been put on hold because the whole family had relocated into the same apartment.  Every day Walter’s mother’s dream kept her moving so that she can be able to make money. Despite her efforts to make money, she and Walter’s father couldn’t make enough money to fulfill their dreams so that they can become a reality. After the death of Walter’s father, an opportunity came where she was fortunate that there was the insurance money that gave her the first chance to achieve her dream of owning a house (Weales, Gerald, 527). This statement implies that one may be fortunate to get what they want despite the opportunity coming from a sad situation. For instance, an orphan may be given the scholarship to go and study at Harvard College simply because they have no means to pay for their school fees compared to students who have parents, which could be assumed to have the means to pay for their parents school fees. For some cases, this may be possible that they have the financial ability to cover their school fees, but in other situations, they may have parents, but they are unfortunate since their parents are poor and can’t afford their school fees.

In this play, Hansberry questions stereotypes such as African Americans being weak, illiterate, and impoverished. The younger family is portrayed as a poor black family who lives in an apartment that is too small to house each family member comfortably; they are barely scraping by due to their low income; they are often unable to obtain decent employment due to their lack of education, and they are searching for the quickest way to become wealthy. Even though far more African Americans are leading better lives and having access to better opportunities than the Younger family, most of the stereotypes listed in the play are still held today. Numerous individuals outside of African American culture think of most African American men just like Walter, the poor, illiterate black man planning to enter a company with well-known con artists (Cooper, David, 59). Many people also believe that African Americans reside in the most impoverished areas, seek higher education, and work in low-wage jobs. Many people still believe that Black Men and women prefer to live lives that are less than ideal However, this is not the situation; African Americans have a reputation for having to work incredibly hard to escape poverty. In some instances, poverty is an individual’s only option; furthering one’s education to find a better career is difficult.

Work cited

Cooper, David D. “Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun.” The Explicator 52.1 (1993): 59-61.

Hansberry, Lorraine, and Michelle Shay. A Raisin in the Sun. Canadian National Institute for the Blind, 1974.

May, Theresa J. “” Consequences unforseen…” in Raisin in the Sun and Caroline, Or Change.” Journal of Dramatic Theory and Criticism (2006): 127-144.

Weales, Gerald SN. “Thoughts on A Raisin in the Sun.” Commentary 28 (1959): 527.