A Raisin In The Sun Critical Lens

“Reading good literature won’t make a reader a better person any more than just sitting in a church, synagogue, or mosque will. But reading good books well just might.” This quote is from the article “How Reading Makes Us More Human.” It shows that although the common belief is that reading will make us better people, it doesn’t mean anything to us unless we really know how to comprehend the book itself and allow it to influence our decisions. A text that applies to this idea is A Raisin in the Sun. It is just a normal book until you take it to a new realization and apply it to much more. Through this book, I have learned how characters are influenced by their surroundings, how pieces of the book connect to this quote, and how my life has been influenced by the actions of characters throughout the book.

Just because a person can perform superior deeds and claim to live peacefully on the outside,
This is seen specifically in the character Beneatha. Beneatha was a very well spoken, educated woman, and because she was able to read well and take her learnings to a more thoughtful measure, she was more aware of the world around her. “I know- because that’s what it says in all the novels that men write. But it isn't. Go ahead and laugh- but I’m not interested in being someone's little episode in America or- (With feminine Vengeance) one of them!” (A Raisin in the Sun 2.64). Her education influenced her thoughts as she became more independent and began to make decisions with the impact of what she has read in the past. We also see her change as she furthers her education and makes the decision to study and embrace her culture