Lorraine Hansberry's A Raisin In The Sun
“I Have a Dream,” says Martin Luther King Jr. in front of the Lincoln Memorial on August 28, 1963. This is the day when people listen and understand the horrors of segregation and attempt to end it. In Lorraine Hansberry’s play, “A Raisin in the Sun,” the Younger family is going through the daily trauma of being an African American family during the 1940s to 1950s. The family of five live in a cramped apartment in Southside Chicago and they wait for the $10,000 check from the health insurance to arrive. As time goes by, the family focuses on the money instead of committing to their dreams, and those dreams ultimately become deferred dreams. The effects of deferred dreams on the Younger family include; miscommunication, and under appreciation.
…show more content…
They didn’t earn it; instead, someone had to die for it. Big Walter works so hard for his family and Mama is ashamed that Walter gives the money “all away in one day” (2.3.129) and how Big Walter is “killing himself” (2.3.129) in order to provide for the family. Mama appreciates Big Walter, but the rest of the family does not. Instead, they are just fighting over the money. Once the family finds out that Willy Harris stole the money, Walter screams, “THAT MONEY IS MADE OUT OF MY FATHER’S FLESH—“ (2.3.128) and he finally understands that they have the money because of the loss of their father. He regrets not listening to his family about the liquor store decision, but it is too late. Beneatha feels very hostile towards Walter and calls him a “toothless rat” (3.1.144) in disgrace, because her school money is lost, and she loses hope of becoming a doctor. Asagai is there to comfort her and realizes that “there’s something wrong in a house—in a world, where all dreams, good or bad, must depend on the death of a man” (3.1.135) and convinces her that there is still hope in the world. They all depend on this money; the family focuses on the money instead of appreciating their father until the capitol is
They didn’t earn it; instead, someone had to die for it. Big Walter works so hard for his family and Mama is ashamed that Walter gives the money “all away in one day” (2.3.129) and how Big Walter is “killing himself” (2.3.129) in order to provide for the family. Mama appreciates Big Walter, but the rest of the family does not. Instead, they are just fighting over the money. Once the family finds out that Willy Harris stole the money, Walter screams, “THAT MONEY IS MADE OUT OF MY FATHER’S FLESH—“ (2.3.128) and he finally understands that they have the money because of the loss of their father. He regrets not listening to his family about the liquor store decision, but it is too late. Beneatha feels very hostile towards Walter and calls him a “toothless rat” (3.1.144) in disgrace, because her school money is lost, and she loses hope of becoming a doctor. Asagai is there to comfort her and realizes that “there’s something wrong in a house—in a world, where all dreams, good or bad, must depend on the death of a man” (3.1.135) and convinces her that there is still hope in the world. They all depend on this money; the family focuses on the money instead of appreciating their father until the capitol is