Analysis Of A Raisin in the Sun
Neill Catangay
Professor Diana Thurber
May 22, 2013
EN210-01
Analysis of “A Raisin in the Sun”
"What happens to a dream deferred?" This question, posed by Langston Hughes in his poem titled "Harlem (Dream Deferred)," is captivatingly answered in the 1961 film adaptation of Lorraine Hansberry's award-winning play, “A Raisin in the Sun”. As one of the first films featuring an all-Black leading cast, the film is directed by Daniel Petrie and stars some talented actors and actress such as Sydney Poitier, Claudia McNeil, Diana Sands and Ruby Dee. This film defies the claustrophobic apartment setting to reveal the lives of several members of a black family daring to dream beyond the limitations that are set on their race.
A "Raisin in the Sun" focuses on the troubled lives of the Younger family. The family's patriarch has died, leaving a $10,000 insurance policy that each member of the family views as a fulfillment of his or her own dream. Walter Lee Younger (Poitier) is an ambitious yet stifled man whose dreams of making a mark in the world leave him dissatisfied with his life as a chauffeur. Beneatha (Sands) is a college student whose dreams lead to conflict in everything from her choice of major to her dating relationships, and ultimately her discovery of her own cultural identity. Walter Lee's wife, Ruth (Dee), is presented as an in between character, whose respect for her mother-in-law and love for her own husband and son leave her divided between her own happiness and the dreams of those she loves. The family's glue is Lena Younger (McNeil), a proud, faith-driven matriarch whose dream of freeing her family from the South Side of Chicago and the racial restraints their apartment presents leads her to dare to put a down payment on a dream house that just happens to be in a segregated White neighborhood.
While the film adaptation of Hansberry's play removes some character development and dialogue, it still maintains the raw emotions put on display within the
Professor Diana Thurber
May 22, 2013
EN210-01
Analysis of “A Raisin in the Sun”
"What happens to a dream deferred?" This question, posed by Langston Hughes in his poem titled "Harlem (Dream Deferred)," is captivatingly answered in the 1961 film adaptation of Lorraine Hansberry's award-winning play, “A Raisin in the Sun”. As one of the first films featuring an all-Black leading cast, the film is directed by Daniel Petrie and stars some talented actors and actress such as Sydney Poitier, Claudia McNeil, Diana Sands and Ruby Dee. This film defies the claustrophobic apartment setting to reveal the lives of several members of a black family daring to dream beyond the limitations that are set on their race.
A "Raisin in the Sun" focuses on the troubled lives of the Younger family. The family's patriarch has died, leaving a $10,000 insurance policy that each member of the family views as a fulfillment of his or her own dream. Walter Lee Younger (Poitier) is an ambitious yet stifled man whose dreams of making a mark in the world leave him dissatisfied with his life as a chauffeur. Beneatha (Sands) is a college student whose dreams lead to conflict in everything from her choice of major to her dating relationships, and ultimately her discovery of her own cultural identity. Walter Lee's wife, Ruth (Dee), is presented as an in between character, whose respect for her mother-in-law and love for her own husband and son leave her divided between her own happiness and the dreams of those she loves. The family's glue is Lena Younger (McNeil), a proud, faith-driven matriarch whose dream of freeing her family from the South Side of Chicago and the racial restraints their apartment presents leads her to dare to put a down payment on a dream house that just happens to be in a segregated White neighborhood.
While the film adaptation of Hansberry's play removes some character development and dialogue, it still maintains the raw emotions put on display within the