The Meaning of Life in the Play, A Raisin in the Sun by...

In the play, A Raisin in the Sun, the characters of Mama and Walter have distinct views on what they think the meaning of life is. To a certain extent, it is evident that Walter and Mama have incompatible dreams. Mama dreams of being able to have a better life by owning a house and Walter dreams of starting an alcohol business. Their dreams are only similar because they both want their families to benefit from them. Their distinct dreams intertwine with their associations concerning the meaning of life. Their dreams also show the relationship between the aspirations of certain characters and the intergenerational gap between those characters. This essay will discuss the intergenerational differences between certain characters in the play thus showing the way in which time functions in the play. For Walter money is life. This is evident in the play as Walter is desperate to get hold of the money from the insurance cheque which was left behind by his father at the time of his death for Mama. He wants to use this money in order to start his liquor business. This is evident at the beginning of the play when Walter asks Ruth to speak to Mama about his idea relating to the investment that he wants to make for the liquor store that he wants to start with his friends. Walter wishes to use a part of Mamas insurance cheque in order to do so. Thus it is clear money represents the epitome of a better life for Walter. According to Abdelmawjoud, Walter believes that money â€Å"representsShow MoreRelatedSummary Of Lorraine Hansberry 1486 Words   |  6 PagesLorraine Hansberry, born May 19, 1930, made a very prominent contribution to society in her short lived life. She was born to a middle class family as the youngest of four children. Her father was a successful real estate broker who also founded one of the first Negro banks in Chicago (Adams 247). Lorraine’s mother was a schoolteacher named Nannie Perry who later became a ward committeewoman. In 1938, Lorraine’s father took a stand against the real estate covenants in Chicago due to the fact thatRead MoreLorraine Hansberry s Life As A Whole1461 Words   |  6 Pagesidentified Lorraine Hansberry’s life as a whole. Hansberry was born on May 19, 1930 in Chicago. She was the third youngest out of seven siblings. Her parents contributed a large amount of money to NAACP and the Urban League, because of this Hansberry was never comfortable with her rich girl status, so instead she identified herself as â€Å"poor†. She was admired by the children who were so often independent and matured which she imitated. Later on in Hansberry early life, 1938, the Hansberry moved intoRead MoreAnalysis Of A Raisin In The Sun By Lorraine Hansberry1158 Words   |  5 Pagesincredible play A Raisin in the Sun, written by Lorraine Hansberry. To further understand the play please read the text below about the background of Hansberry’s life, living conditions in the er a that the play took place, and reviews written about the play. Lorraine Hansberry was a playwright and a writer. She was born in Chicago May 19, 1930 in Chicago, and she grew up in the Woodlawn neighborhood in the South side of Chicago. Her parents were well known civil rights activists; Carl Hansberry (herRead MoreLorraine Hansberrys A Raisin in the Sun1260 Words   |  6 Pagesoblivious to this fact, and to those who are aware and accept this knowledge. The people who are oblivious represent those who are ignorant of the fact that their dream will be deferred. This denial is the core of the concept used in A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry. The perception of the American Dream is one that is highly subjective, but every individual dream ends in its own deferment. During the 1960s, the African-American people were in racial situations due to their â€Å"lowered status†. TheyRead Moreâ€Å"A Proud-Acting Bunch†: The Issues of Suburbanization and Class Stratification in â€Å"A Raisin in the Sun† 1462 Words   |  6 Pagessource of meaning and security† (May 24) to those seeking refuge and comfort after a tumultuous time of war. Among those migrating from the cities to the suburbs were middle-class African Americans, who sought a suburban life that both â€Å"express[ed] and reinforce[d] their newly won social position.† (Wiese 101) However, this middle-class migration from urban areas left behind working class African Americans such as the Younger family of Lorraine Hansberry’s 1959 play â€Å"A Raisin in the Sun.† While theRead MoreA Raisin In The Sun Character Analysis902 Words   |  4 PagesMurray and Gordon: Segregation vs. Southern Pride Lorraine Hansberry’s â€Å"A Raisin in the Sun† touches on many issues African Americans faced in the early to mid-twentieth century. One can analyze Hansberry’s â€Å"A Raisin in the Sun† from many angles, and come away with different meanings. While Michelle Gordon focuses more on segregation and housing discrimination that plagued African Americans on Chicago’s Southside in Hansberry’s â€Å"A Raisin in the Sun†, William Murray emphasizes on Southern Pride andRead MoreEssay about A Raisin in the Sun1559 Words   |  7 Pagesgoods† (May 18), for â€Å"one of the most noted verbal sparring matches of the century,† aptly coined the â€Å"kitchen debate† (16). As Khrushchev applauded the Communist system and its hardworking women, Nixon â€Å"extolled the virtues of the American way of life† (16), emphasizing America’s â€Å"successful breadwinners supporting attractive homemakers in affluent suburba n homes† (18). Although Nixon’s emphasis upon the suburban lifestyle may have successfully displayed America’s superiority in consumer goods,Read MoreLorraine Hansberry s A Raisin982 Words   |  4 Pages but the unfortunate part is that they might be dead. In the play, A Raisin in the Sun, the author, Lorraine Hansberry, choose to name her play from a famous poem by Langston Hughes. It is difficult to really know why she choose Hughes’ poem but there are reasons to infer. Lorraine Hansberry choose to name her play after Langston Hughes’ poem because of what the poem meant and that poem closely related to the characters within the play. Langston Hughes was one of the most important writers and thinkersRead MoreLorraine Hansberry s A Raisin Of The Sun1527 Words   |  7 Pagesâ€Å"A Raisin in the Sun† is about the Younger Family who live in a small apartment in Chicago. The family is torn apart as every member has different dreams and goals, yet Mama and her daughter-in-law Ruth desperately attempt to hold the family all together. In both the movie and the play, the family’s dreams remain the same. Mama wants her family to get along and she wants to purchase a house. Her son, Walter, wants the life insurance money from his father to invest in a liquor store to achieve hisRead More Difficulities in the Play A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry1383 Words   |  6 PagesDifficulities in the Play A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry In the four years between 1861 and 1865 this country was in civil war over the rights and freedom of blacks in America. When all was said and done, the blacks won their freedom and gained several rights that would make their lives better. Nearly one hundred years later, in 1959, Lorraine Hansberry wrote her great play, A Raisin in the Sun. It described the everyday life of a black family in the Southside of Chicago