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A Raisin in the Sun

by Lorraine Hansberry

3.58 · rating details · 13,073 ratings · 568 reviews

When it was first produced in 1959, A Raisin in the Sun was awarded the New York Drama Critics Circle Award for that season and hailed as a watershed in American drama. A pioneering work by an African-American playwright, the play was a radically new representation of black life. "A play that changed American theater forever."--The New York Times.

Paperback, 160 pages

Published November 29th 2004 by Random House (first published 1959)

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Jul 20, 2007

Jeffrey rated it

· review of another edition

Lorraine Hansberry's A Raisin in the Sun is very deservedly considered a timeless classic. Unlike many other works from around the same era, Hansberry provokes and moves her audience without writing of complete devastation. To explain how her style and choices are different than her contemporaries, is to give away the ending. The denouement of A Raisin in the Sun is like no other of its genre. This is what makes it a classic. It is timeless because of Hansberry's presentation of the familia...more

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Oct 30, 2007

Shep Trott rated it

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I didn't finish this. It was good writing. It had okay characters, a bit typish, but whatever.

The reason I didn't finish it is because even if the title didn't give it away, it became clear that it would end badly. I don't want to teach my kids about how hard life is, and the probability problems people from the ghetto have. They know that shit.

It got me thinking about American Classic Drama. I went on a Eugene O'Neil kick back in college, and he was another grea...more

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Jul 02, 2007

sydney rated it

Recommends it for: people who live in cities, teachers, everyone

This is a great play. Part of the reason I loved it is because I saw some former students act out scenes from it last month, and they were amazing. But! One of the reasons they were able to be so amazing is because this is a great play. It touches on common themes-- the American dream, generation gaps, family, race relations, identity. Hansberry gets dialogue just right. Her characters are strong and relatable. It's funny and moving at the same time and still makes sense fifty years after...more

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Jul 27, 2008

booklady rated it

Shelves: 2008, classic, historical-fiction

Hansberry's death from cancer at 34 just six years after the publication and first production of Raisin in the Sun was a real loss to both the literary and dramatic worlds. Not everyone likes to read plays; I enjoy them. This one is exceptional. The characters are well-defined, real, memorable; the interaction among them vibrant, interesting, at times gut-wrenching, never dull. Raisin is a snapshot of black urban life on the eve of the sixties, just before the civil rights movement. And yet,...more

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Feb 09, 2008

Joel rated it

What happens to a dream deferred?

Does it dry up
like a raisin in the sun?
Or fester like a sore--
And then run?
Does it stink like rotten meat?
Or crust and sugar over--
like a syrupy sweet?

Maybe it just sags
like a heavy load.

Or does it explode?

I decided to assign this to my Honors American Lit class before I had even read it myself. I'm so glad I did! I really enjoyed the characters. And while students get a kic...more

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Mar 23, 2009

Summer rated it

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Shelves: engl-7701

I read A Raisin in the Sun in high school but remembered little about the storyline. Rereading it was a delight; I especially enjoyed how effortlessly the dialogue flowed and how well Hansberry created such dynamic characters. As I read it a second time, I tried to concentrate on what I believed was the reason this play was so important to read as a high school student. I think the main reason this play is an important piece of literature that should be explored in the English classroom is be...moreI read A Raisin in the Sun in high school but remembered little about the storyline. Rereading it was a delight; I especially enjoyed how effortlessly the dialogue flowed and how well Hansberry created such dynamic characters. As I read it a second time, I tried to concentrate on what I believed was the reason this play was so important to read as a high school student. I think the main reason this play is an important piece of literature that should be explored in the English classroom is because it is a raw portrayal of the struggles of African Americans in post-WWII America. I suppose I mean to say that instead of classes talking generally about the prejudices that took place in American society after WWII (and still today, for that matter), Hansberry put faces to the struggle. Each of her characters wants different things and believes that success lies in those personal desires and aspirations. The characters became real to me – their situations more sincere. I think literature like this has a more powerful effect on how students understand and appreciate history.

An interesting reaction I had to the play was that I did not view the
Youngers as victims in a society that refused to allow them equal opportunities. I know this might sound strange, but I will go even further in saying that I do not feel that was Hansberry’s intention anyway. This is not to say that I did not sympathize with them from time to time, only that I believe Hansberry wanted her readers to be more focused on each character’s unique desires, not the collective group striving for the same goal. I think it was important to put this emphasis on the individual as so much of our history about the struggles of African Americans to gain equality groups everyone together as having the same dreams. Hansberry’s play shows that it is not that simple. In addition, she creates characters that are not necessarily endearing to the reader. I struggled the most with Walter who I felt was selfish, lazy, and unreasonably idealistic. Ruth, too, had her moments when my sympathy for her turned to annoyance because of her personality. I found it interesting that Hansberry was not concerned with creating likable characters.

It is evident from the title that the play focuses on deferred dreams. Every character has a specific goal: Mama wants a house for her family, Beneatha wants to be a doctor, Ruth wants to move out of their cramped apartment, Walter wants money. As the play progresses, we learn how much each character emphasizes their wants and how realistic their desires are. It was easy for me to want what Mama and Ruth wanted. It was easy for me to root for Beneatha and her dream of being a doctor. However, I found it impossible to view Walter’s desire as a viable goal for the family. His intense selfishness and lack of understanding that success comes with hard work was the main reason. I was not surprised when he took the entire $6500 and invested it even after Mama told him to put some aside for Beneatha’s schooling. I had absolutely no respect for his character, and I did not believe there was a true change in him even after he refused to be bought out by Mr. Lindner. What frustrated me the most was the representation of Walter as a sort of hero at the end of the play for not accepting Lindner’s offer to purchase their house. Had his son not been there to witness this, he would probably have made the deal with Lindner. He should not have been given so much credit for doing the right thing. I found him insincere.

A Raisin in the Sun is definitely an important piece of literature to study. Hansberry challenges her readers to look beyond the struggles of African Americans as a whole and focus on each individual. She reminds her readers that while they may sometimes be victims of an unjust society, this does not make each a saint. Walter is the perfect example of this. We did not necessarily have to like him simply because he was a struggling black man. At first I was concerned with my own reaction to this until I discovered that perhaps Hansberry intended for her audience to have this view. If anything, I imagine that readers come away with the realization that everyone’s ideas of success are different, some more attainable and reasonable than others.

VOYA Evaluation: 5Q, 4P
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Dec 24, 2011

Tenzing rated it

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A raisin In the Sun is a play written by Lorraine Hansberry that depicts the challenges faced by Black family against their own internal problem. The play involves issues of patriarchy and the privileges of being white skinned. This play was basically made to show the white people, how much the African Americans suffered the coldness of white racism and the sacrifices that they had to make from the eldest in the family to the youngest one. The play also shows the transformation of challenges fa...more A raisin In the Sun is a play written by Lorraine Hansberry that depicts the challenges faced by Black family against their own internal problem. The play involves issues of patriarchy and the privileges of being white skinned. This play was basically made to show the white people, how much the African Americans suffered the coldness of white racism and the sacrifices that they had to make from the eldest in the family to the youngest one. The play also shows the transformation of challenges faced by the older generation of working African Americans in comparison to a younger generation's.
Sexism is very prominent in the play specially with the aggravations of Walter Lee Younger. He opens the first scene in dialogue with his wife Ruth talking to her about, Black women being the most backward of all women in the world because they do not support their Black men. He enforces his patriarchal conventions, by giving his son the money for school even after Ruth denied him for other economic reasons. Beneatha, his younger sister suffers from sexism and male domination throughout the play. She challenges the narrow minded people of the society who feel black women cannot be successful by aiming to be a doctor, and not a nurse like the other women. She is challenged by the adults as they do not support her in achieving her goals and also making her change her ambition due to the roles of women played during the olden days. But she cannot go against them because throughout the play she does not show any control over her life as she is dependant on the man of the house who has patriarchal views.
Walter asks his sister Beneatha not to be a doctor, instead asked her to be a nurse or get married after the discussion about money. He wants to spend the money on a liquor store which he feels will bring more money at home. He considers his dream more important than her ambition of going to a medical school and be a doctor. Therefore, her goals are not respected in front of his dreams. The author also expresses that Lena is a patriarchal mother as she gives up to her son and gives him the money to fulfill his dreams and not to her daughter to go to a medical school. Ruth is mostly doing household duties, as she gets every body's breakfast clothes and other things ready before she leave for her house keeping job.
The social class power also plays a major role because during the entire play we hear Walter and his mother talking about the embarrassment that they feel about laboring for the white people as their servants. Walter even mentions that, “god didn’t see fit to give the black man nothing but dreams.” This sentence clearly makes it visible that they are facing discrimination and are suffering a lot as they can only see dreams about big things, but cannot make it into reality. There was a situation when Walter talks about business to his wife and tells her that black people cannot start their own business. It’s always the white people who have more money and power to start which is why Black people are always lacking behind. The Murchisons are god-real-live-rich coloured people do not want their son George to get married with Beneatha even though they were in love because she came from a low class family.(less)

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Dec 22, 2011

Brianna Swindell rated it

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This play had an interesting storyline. It explained the rough times that african americans had to deal with. The family was held together by Mama and she tried her best to keep the family in its best shape. With the little income that they had, she always maintained the peace within her family. She had a daughter that was in college and a son that continued to try and start his own business. Everyone in the family had big dreams and were ambitious to acheive their goals. When the opportunity ca...more

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Oct 13, 2011

Acmegocool rated it

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There is nothing so wonderful as a play with the right mix of spot-on characters, realistic dialogue, captivating plotlines, and perfect stage directions.

I thought “A Raisin in the Sun” had all of these things. Its characters were human, not perfect, and their thoughts and words were uniquely their own. The incredible thing about the Younger family is that they rise. They are constantly being pushed down during the course of the story, but they manage to rebound, whether by shruggin...more

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Oct 08, 2011

Nairobi rated it

As I read the book Raisin in the Sun I thought that it was the most instersting book ive read. When I read this book it really profounded with excellence when the actors played there roles , this book showed me the diffcultes of what African Amercians been through in 1959.I thoght that in some part of the book that it showed how black family was in this time and some people have sterotypes, me being African Amercian I felt that it was great how they show how some families are.But as Iread throug...more

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Sep 19, 2011

matt rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: america-f-k-yeah, theatrepieces, social-crit, satire

Works equally well as a domestic ('living room') drama, problem play, and social realism. It's durable enough to sustain any number of readings and carries with it a connecting thread of verisimilitude. The other day a student asked me when it was set. I said 'early sixties', which was close enough (1959) but it was intentionally left a bit open- "any time from the end of WW2 to the present" says Hansberry's own stage directions. I love this as an example of its universality (it's ...moreWorks equally well as a domestic ('living room') drama, problem play, and social realism. It's durable enough to sustain any number of readings and carries with it a connecting thread of verisimilitude. The other day a student asked me when it was set. I said 'early sixties', which was close enough (1959) but it was intentionally left a bit open- "any time from the end of WW2 to the present" says Hansberry's own stage directions. I love this as an example of its universality (it's set in the South Side of Chicago, and I think it's worth mentioning that a certain Michelle Obama has roots there, around this time period, if I'm not mistaken).

James Baldwin, for one, testified to its galvanizing impact when it was first performed. It's almost anachronistic in this "tolerant", postmodern cultural context to think how an all "Negro" play could have been controversial and potentially unmarketable as a concept in itself. It ran for a triumphant 539 performances on Broadway, after a somewhat stalled first preview. People were cheering and shouting along with the actors, which is as beautiful and legitimate a reaction to a probing, existentially relevant drama of social mores as any I could think of. There was some debate in Aristotelian scholarship as to whether or not the famous "catharsis" he thought necessary for great drama had to do with the emotional reaction of the actors or the audience. Judging by the reputation, "Raisin" was a success on both counts.

It's powerful and vibrantly drawn- the characterizations are strong, rounded, dynamic, and interesting. There's stoic, elliptical Mama, the patriarch who can sense that time is running short in all manner of ways; humble, unvanquished Ruth, who suffers the indignities of those around her with quiet grace and fierce self-reliance; brainy, sassy, insecure Beneatha, the sister with a hunger for knowledge and independence which cannot be satisfied by bread alone; and mercurial, masculine Walter whose Promethean desire to change his station in life is met with unexpected and coldly near-insurmountable circumstances.

Sidney Poitier's portrayal of him is a thing of beauty- a powerful, kinetic, magnetic characterization from which sparks alight, at times reminiscent of the tacit violence and aching want in the revolutionary methods of Brando and Dean. The film, very truthful in itself to the nuances and dramatic plotting of the stage play, is definitely worth a watch. The Diddy version is...the Diddy version.

Hansberry once mentioned that back in her nascent years as a creative artist she had seen J.M. Synge's "Juno And The Paycock" onstage and that it resonated with her. She said something to the effect (the quote's not at hand, unfortunately) of "the song was different but I heard the melody."

In "Raisin", her newly discovered powers as a dramatist and loving, yet critical and complex social critic picked up their instruments and played a deep, penetratingly blue chorus of raw pain, love, generosity and ineluctable human truth. (less)

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Aug 29, 2011

Diane rated it

· review of another edition

Lorraine Hansberry based the title of her play on Langston Hughes's famous poem about a dream being constantly deferred. Case and point are the fictional Youngers who are about as nonfictional as you can get. They are a struggling family of African Americans desperately in need of something better than what life, or perhaps a better word would be society, has dealt them.

Love is a constant in the Younger home even if it seems to be in hiding for most of the play. That threatening o...moreLorraine Hansberry based the title of her play on Langston Hughes's famous poem about a dream being constantly deferred. Case and point are the fictional Youngers who are about as nonfictional as you can get. They are a struggling family of African Americans desperately in need of something better than what life, or perhaps a better word would be society, has dealt them.

Love is a constant in the Younger home even if it seems to be in hiding for most of the play. That threatening of love dying spurs the play forward as each obstacle beats the Youngers down into what would seem to be unyielding submission. However, throughout the play Hansberry cleverly intercedes with hopeful new dreams and metaphors such as the sun, children, and Big Walter's presence equating to hope. As the Youngers wait on the check to come in the mail of Big Walter's life long struggle to gain some money, the Youngers retain hope. But as their dreams are constantly stepped on hope becomes the last thing to die.

This play not only talks about African American rights, but women's rights as well. The author touches on it briefly throughout the play to give a reminder that not only are African Americans being subjugated against, but women as well. It makes Black women the bottom of the proverbial totem pole. Not-so-surprisingly, then, she makes her female characters extraordinarily strong in this play. It also comments on ideas such as returning to Africa as a 'cure' to the desperate situation African American's must face in America. Asagai, a Nigerian man, is very secure in his identity and suggests it, but it is only briefly considered, giving a hint as to where Hansberry stood on that particular subject.

Many other smaller, but no less important, nuances of the text include lost identity that is captured well in Benethea. She is divided into categories as to how an African American should look, talk, or otherwise conduct herself.

As Walter, our male whirlwind of the story, struggles on his big ideas and dreams the women tend to focus on smaller, more attainable battles. While he focuses on money, they focus on love. A balance has to be reached and defiance of the 'system' needs to be established or else the threat of society will crush the Youngers and all that they represent.(less)

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Jun 13, 2011

Lennie rated it

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The Younger family is poor and they live in Chicago. Mama does domestic work in people’s kitchens while her grown son, Walter, works as a chauffeur. She always wanted the best for her children and so when a life insurance check arrives in the mail she has to make a decision about what to do with the money. It is her dream to buy a house, fix it up, and make a garden in the back but Walter has other ideas. He wants his mother to give him the money so he can own a liquor store. This creates c...more

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Apr 13, 2011

Mayday Maddie rated it

So truthfully I finished the book last Friday, but then my Goodreads log would get screwed up and the order of days would be weird and since I have a mild case of OCD, particularly with chronology, we're pretending that I finished it today... and technically I did since I read the acknowledgements out of sheer boredom in Language Arts class.

This was one of the first books (well, really it's a play, but still) assigned by a teacher that I hadn't already read. It wasn't half bad either...more

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Dec 16, 2010

Noah rated it

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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. The American Dream is an ideal that many share. Whether they live in the pent-houses of New York, the suburbs of Los Angeles, or the slums of Detroit, legally or illegally, Americans everywhere strive to attain that ideal that is simply described in the Declaration of Independence as “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” However, many stories depict the degeneration and decay of the American Dream. Some speculate that A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry is a story about that moral...moreThe American Dream is an ideal that many share. Whether they live in the pent-houses of New York, the suburbs of Los Angeles, or the slums of Detroit, legally or illegally, Americans everywhere strive to attain that ideal that is simply described in the Declaration of Independence as “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” However, many stories depict the degeneration and decay of the American Dream. Some speculate that A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry is a story about that moral deterioration. However, this play is an example of how close and how good the American Dream can be. The members of the Younger family struggle to accomplish their own separate ambitions, their own unique perception of the American Dream, and these misguided notions are “dreams deferred.” Thus, it is the misperceptions of the American Dream that crumble away with their equally corrupt ideals; they are what erode the edifice of morals and ethics, upon whose shoulders this Dream is built. In addition, the novel The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald illustrates the life of the false American Dream. The characters of this story are corrupt and corrupted by the immoral pursuit of money; they are all deceived and misled by their dissolute perception of the American Dream. Although one story shows the beginnings of a true American Dream and the other exemplifies its corruption, both share the similar elements of a character who desires the hollow lifestyle of the rich and famous, but who is unable to attain it and, in the end, realizes its futility and worthlessness.
Nick Carraway in The Great Gatsby reflects the goals of Walter Younger Jr. in A Raisin in the Sun. Although they differ in many respects, both desire the money, the wealth, and the rich lifestyle that seems to be all around them, perhaps meant for them. Nick tries to partake of the prosperity by moving to New York and working in the bond business. He is attracted by the fast-paced, fun lifestyle that surrounds him, but he begins to see that it is only a mask for the moral emptiness that is within men like Jay Gatsby. Likewise, Walter Younger Jr. wants to become a part of the easy success of his friends by investing in a Liquor Store. Throughout the novel, we can see that he is attracted by wealth in the form of George Murchison and wants his sister Beneatha to marry George for his money. However, we are shown how hollow and careless George is in comparison to Asagai, who has purpose and meaning, though not money, in life. In the end, Walter Jr. also realizes that money is not everything, that he must take life one step at a time, and that buying the house is and uniting his family is part of the true American Dream and not the deception that he originally desired.
These two examples show the depravity and desperation of the false ideals that are idolized by most of society and are, in a way, morality tales. The main characters of both stories learn a Biblical lesson, that “love of money is the root of all evil”1 and that in order to attain those false dreams of fame and richness they would have to lose the morals and ethics that separate them from the corruption and futility that is at first so appealing. Both Nick Carraway and Walter Lee Younger Jr. realize that the American Dream is not based on materialism or monetary gains, but is instead founded on our human and civil rights; the building blocks of unity, understanding, love, compassion—all that is good and right in humankind—the realization and acceptance of these is the true American Dream, so that every person, regardless of their class or race, can enjoy “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” without the hindrance of racism or discrimination of any kind.
In the beginning of A Raisin in the Sun, Walter Lee Younger Jr. disregards the opinions of his family and the dreams of his mother and sister by continuing to associate with shady characters like Willy Harris. Walter continues to support his business aspirations despite his mother’s disapproval at the idea of running a liquor store and the graft and bribery that he would be involved in. He leaves behind his conservative morals in his quest for material gain. His integrity, honesty, and amiability are slowly degrading as he distances himself from his family and goes closer to what he thinks is prosperity. In reality, Walter is only losing himself to the deception and lies of a false American Dream—a dream of money and material success where one has gained the world but lost their soul in the process.2 However, he does not know the consequences of materialism and thinks his actions are what is best for the family, as evidenced in his transfixed description of the better life Walter will create for them:

“I’ll come home and I’ll be pretty tired…after a day of conferences and secretaries getting things wrong the way they do… And I’ll pull the car up on the driveway…maybe a Cadillac convertible… And I’ll come up the steps to the house and the gardener will be clipping away at the hedges… And I’ll go inside and Ruth will come downstairs and meet me at the door and we’ll kiss each other...”

This better life would never have come about through Walter’s course of actions, through the moral decay that was slowly taking him farther away from all that he knew and loved. Fortunately, Walter’s false desire is deferred and he comes to accept that his mother’s decision to buy a house, which he had originally disapproved of, is the best thing for the family. Surely, this first step has established the right of anyone, of any color or creed, to move ahead in life and rise above those things that can bring us down—the Willy Harris’s and George Murchison’s that give us false hope, the small apartments and dying flowers that barely renew our faith, the lure of wealth that everyone but us seems to have.
Certainly, these dismal circumstances affected Nick Carraway in his search for personal success and enjoyment in high society. He was welcomed by the “Old Money” and “New Money” with open arms and was able to experience the lifestyle of a wealthy person. While attracted and enticed by this unrestricted and exciting lifestyle, Nick was, at the same time, revolted by its hollowness and the corruption that undermined it all. There were no ethical limitations or moral obligations; it was purposeless and aimless, evoking no true satisfaction but only a deeper emptiness. This dream was also deferred as events came to a climax and his friends deserted the area, at which point his prospects in the bond business also plummeted. This personal dream of wealth and success was under-mined by the degradation of morality and was deferred by events beyond Nick’s control. Their destruction was everywhere, and it was not an American Dream, but an ambition to be avoided, as Nick described the actions of his cousin and cousin-in-law:

“They were careless people, Tom and Daisy—they smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money or their vast carelessness, or whatever it was that kept them together, and let people clean up the mess they had made…”

Their great wealth had brought them even greater emptiness, which is why Nick decides to return home at the end of the book. He pessimistically relates his revelations: that we cannot salvage the past or capture the fleeting future, and that life in high society is irresistibly tempting, but irreparably self-destructive.
But both Walter Younger and Nick Carraway rise above the snares that lie around them, traps that even claim some of their integrity. Walter betrayed the trust of his family when he trusted his mother’s money in the hands of Willy Harris. Nick had gone off to New York despite his father’s wishes and saw the fallacy of life among the wealthy, but had indulged in it nonetheless. Fortunately, their quest for materialistic gratification was stopped.
Despite the dire implications of the materialism that is almost tangible to the main characters of both stories, fate does not have moral or physical ruin in store for any of them. Instead, an auspicious turn of events defers the unprofitable desires that were once within reach. For both the Youngers and Nick Carraway, their American Dream seemed to dry up like a raisin in the sun, but that raisin was only sweeter and riper than ever before, without the boundaries of racial or class discrimination. Out of the ashes of old, selfish, material desires arose the foundations of a true American Dream—waiting for Nick Carraway in the street lamps and returning trains of the Midwest, beneath the dusky streetlamps where his family was awaiting his return; awaiting Walter Younger in the love of his family’s forgiving arms and in the security (and challenges) of 406 Clybourne Place. Although the loss of material success seems unfortunate and the future bleak because of these deferred dreams, both Nick and Walter seem to have re-evaluated their situations by the end of the story and both have changed their original goals. Nick realizes that the ‘high-life’ is hollow and worthless, and that the answer will not be found in the corrupt lifestyle epitomized by the East. Similarly, Walter sees that he must not give into the temptation of easy money and that the best thing for himself and his family is to buy the house—both a statement of family integrity and growth, and a fight against the racial discrimination that exists even today. By letting go of their immoral desires and searching for the true American Dream, both Nick and Walter, in a sense, grow up. Mama knows best when she eloquently says, at the very end of the play, “He finally come into his manhood today, didn’t he? Kind of like a rainbow after the rain . . .”

Both A Raisin in the Sun and The Great Gatsby are stories of struggle, temptation, corruption, and, finally, redemption. They show an ethical battle between the lures of corruption and material satisfaction, and the completeness and contentment that comes with a morally sound and unprejudiced lifestyle. Beneath these major themes are the character developments of Walter Lee Younger Jr. and Nick Carraway, through which we learn about the falsities and snares of wealth and fame. The end of their development marks the end of their stories—the point where they have discovered what they need to know and can therefore embark on a new journey towards the American Dream.

1 1 Timothy 6:10
2 Mark 8:36
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Jul 19, 2010

Raadhika rated it

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A Raisin in the Sun is a play set in Chicago's southside around the 1950s. Segregation between Caucasians and African-Americans was dominant throughout the book. This play definitely depicted the challenging lifestyle of a Black family struggling with internal problems along with intensified White discrimination. Issues of poverty, privelages towards Whites, and patricarchy were central themes of the play. The family was made up of five whole-hearted members-Ruth,Walter, Beneatha,Mama, and Trav...more

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Jan 25, 2010

A'kinyele Sharp added it · review of another edition

“A Raisin in the sun is an inspiring play. The title comes from Langston Hughes poem “What happen to a Dream Deferred.” The poem inspired Lorraine Hansberry to follow her dream and write the play “A Raisin in the sun.”The poem shows that live comes with a lot of obstacles.
In the play Walter Lee was the man in charge. But made some unthinkable decisions. n Ruth was Walter wife who was focused to make some difficult decisions, but it was to better the Younger family, Travis Younger was Walt...more

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Jan 14, 2010

Adontis Robinson rated it

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A Raisin In The Sun
By: Lorraine Hansberry

It's ironic to grow up without nothing and then have everything you always wanted. This book, “A Raisin In The Sun”, is a definitely one novel of the year. Someone should read this book because you get a lot out of it like Walter and his family really did not have nothing like clothes and food and all the other good stuff.

Characters:
Walter is mean and don't think about nobody else but his self. Beneatha is the one ...more

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Jan 08, 2010

Shawndtrana Campbell rated it

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Recommends it for: everyone

Recommended to Shawndtrana by: my freshman english teacher

Shawndtrana Campbell
January 8, 2010

A raisin in the sun book review
To begin with I would like to say that the book a raisin in the sun is a phenomenal book. It really relates to real life and actual events.
In the book a raisin in the sun there is one character that really stands out to me which is Walter mama’s oldest son. In the book a Walter learns what happens to a dream deferred.
In the beginning of the book I read that Walter has a poor family. Walter, ...more

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May 12, 2009

4julia rated it

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You Can’t Handle Reading That Book

I’m not a glass half-full kind of person. I’m not a glass half-empty kind of person. I’m an in- the-middle kind of person who can see both sides. I can agree with both sides. There will always be someone trying to get me on the other side of the tug of war. That’s why I think when it came to banning books, I was on both sides. Some books make sense being on the “you can’t handle this book” list such as Naked Lunch, Songs of Solomon, or Sla...moreYou Can’t Handle Reading That Book

I’m not a glass half-full kind of person. I’m not a glass half-empty kind of person. I’m an in- the-middle kind of person who can see both sides. I can agree with both sides. There will always be someone trying to get me on the other side of the tug of war. That’s why I think when it came to banning books, I was on both sides. Some books make sense being on the “you can’t handle this book” list such as Naked Lunch, Songs of Solomon, or SlaughterHouse-Five5. But I can’t see the Lorax being banned. Come on it’s a Dr. Seuss book for crying out loud. This is my perspective on why some books should be banned and others not.
My friend Flicka is a book on the banned book list. Unbelievable. Why is it banned? It used the word bitch to mean a female dog, which is the actual term a person is supposed to use. No way is that a good enough reason to ban a book. Especially when the message in the book is never give up and try. And if that’s not a good enough reason how about Sarah Palin wanted to ban the book. I bet many books about segregation are banned. A Raisin in the Sun was banned. People need to know about segregation or that abortions were once illegal but people did it any way. People need to know the truth; they’re afraid of the truth. But in reality, we should know the truth even if it means saying humans are the monsters and beasts are not scary as in Grendel. That is not a reason to ban a book. On another note, any one can and should read books like The Lorax and Sylvester and the Magic Pebble.
Violence, sexuality, drugs and alcohol, impropriate language, questioning authority, even having a make believe world are all elements that make a book eligible to ban. Portnoy’s Complaint is on the banned list. It is a book about a man complaining about not enjoying his sex life. People don’t really want to read about not enjoying one’s sex life. In Songs of Solomon a grown up is still being breast-fed. That is such a T.M.I. I could see why that book is banned plus all the sexual things in that book I won’t get in to them. Parents and concerned citizens don’t wan t people reading that. Go Ask Alice has so many controversial issues in the book. There’s spiking a drink, teens drinking, molestation the list goes on and on. I’m ok with banning that book from certain areas. Especially for young readers; Or Naked Lunch in this book you never know when the author is on drugs or not it’s just that weird. That book can go. Lolita had a pedophile. I can see why Lolita was banned. In fact the book is so controversial you can’t look up Lolita in Google. Now that’s something.
Where there’s a will there’s a way and I have a will. For certain books there can be an age limit. Certain kids at a certain age can’t read the book. If you’re under seven you can’t read the Narnia books, Harriet the spy. Secondly there could be ratings on books like there are on movies. A book would have a little label that would say PG 13, PG7, and Rated E, special, Grow-up s etc. Any one can read Sylvester and the Magic Pebble because police have been called pigs before so it shouldn’t bother them anymore. If it’s a school reading, the School could send home a permission slip. Or as a last resort, the most obvious of them all, let other families and people read what books they want to but not you or your family.
Ultimately, some books should not be allowed to be read at a certain age while others should never be banned under any circumstances. I do believe others have very weird things in them so it’s ok to ban the book. It’s hard to decide whether the book should be banned. The glass (or the book) can never be empty or full without somebody getting upset.

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Mar 16, 2009

Brian rated it

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Shelves: engl-7701

Pre Read
Prior to reading this play, I have heard about A Raisin in the Sun but never read it. This was one of those books that was on my “to do” list but never got around to reading. I really wasn’t sure what to expect. The cover of the book talks more about the author than about the play so I started the play with little knowledge about it.

During
Finding out that the story is set on the south side of Chicago, I was right at home. My family lived near 81st and Commerci...more

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Jan 11, 2010

Tyinnia Jenkins rated it

A raisin in The Sun

The play a raisin in the sun is such an inspirational play. It was awarded the New York Drama critics circle award and hailed as “a watershed in America drama”. The play was inspirational because the Main Character, Walter inspires the reader to never give up at what your doing until you can successfully finish, Walter invest in a roan store after losing his job but the investment was unsuccessful. A friend of his stole his money from his father’s i...more

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Dec 04, 2011

Alexander Olivero rated it

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The purpose of A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry is to addresses the lives of African Americans in the 1950s. Like many of her works, this play is autobiographical. Hansberry represents black life, while at the same time speaks on women’s rights, identity, and family values. Although this purpose is directly stated, the play offers insight into many of the issues that Hansberry faced in her own life.

The theme of this work clearly revolves around dreams. Throughout t...moreThe purpose of A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry is to addresses the lives of African Americans in the 1950s. Like many of her works, this play is autobiographical. Hansberry represents black life, while at the same time speaks on women’s rights, identity, and family values. Although this purpose is directly stated, the play offers insight into many of the issues that Hansberry faced in her own life.

The theme of this work clearly revolves around dreams. Throughout the play, the dreams of all of the different characters are the most important aspect. The money that comes from the insurance after the death of Mr. Younger starts all of the family members thinking about what they want. Walter has his idea to open a liquor store as an investment to eliminate the families’ concern for money. Beneatha wishes to use the money to pay for her medical school. Mama thinks that the money would be best used to purchase a bigger house for all of the family. In the end, this is what is done with the money which leads to another major theme of the play. The new house is able to bring everyone together after all they had been concerned with is their own dreams of what to do with the money. One quote from the play that really sums up the themes is when Walter says, “We have decided to move into our house because my father—my father—he earned it for us brick by brick. We don’t want to make no trouble for nobody or fight no causes, and we will try to be good neighbors. And that’s all we got to say about that. We don’t want your money.” Walter tells that money is not the most important thing to their family, but the values of their family that they all hold dearly.

This play is a narration of the events that take place for the Younger family in the 1950s. This method of telling the story is very effective because all of the aspects are realistic. Hansberry experienced many of the same things in her own life, so the characters and their actions become very powerful to the reader. This would be better to be seen performed, but simply the words are enough for the reader to get an understanding of what the characters are feeling and going through.

I did enjoy reading this play, but would have much rather been able to see it performed. I really liked it because of how realistic it is and how a simple story of a family can house more important messages for the reader. I don’t know that I would say that there is much that I would change because I have not actually seen the play, as the work is intended to be viewed. I found it similar to Invisible Man simply because of the addressing of racial issues and the idea of dreams. This play is an important representation of African American life that I can only imagine being better if seeing a performance of it.
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Sep 24, 2011

Darius Liddell rated it

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I really liked this play. Hansberry did a good job with the characters and it was brief but dense with good life lessons and complex characters. Beneatha is my favorite and Walter is the most frustrating. Many issues come up in the book such as religious differences within families, moving up to middle class life, and just trying to "make it".

Even though this book is by a black author, I think Hansberry wrote it for everyone. The themes can apply to the human race and aren...more

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Sep 15, 2009

Emily rated it

I really enjoyed this play. I first read it in HS (like most other things) but re-read it for my future novelinks project. I think it expresses so many of the concerns at the time period (despite being vague...sometime between WWII and present) of not only a poor family, but of the black family. It's a devastating story that you have to just sit and watch it unfold, knowing what will happen but see it destroy the characters pulls various emotions, that a play usually lacks. I really liked seeing...more

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Jul 18, 2010

Lena rated it

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A Raisin in the Sun is a really great book. It talks about the Younger family, and the everlasting theme of going for your dreams. Walter dreams of starting a liquor store, while his wife Ruth wants a good life for her family, to Walter's sister, the sassy Beaneatha who's in medical school, seeking to become a doctor. When Mama's (Walter+Beaneatha's mother), check comes in, the rest of the family ponders about all kinds of dreams that could come true.
I think the reason this book (in...more

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Dec 17, 2009

Raven Kight rated it

"A Raisin In The Sun" is a great book it is written by a great author named Lorraine Hansberry. I give this book 5 stars it is a african american studies. "A Raisin In The Sun" is the first drama by a black woman to be produced on broadway. It also won the the new york dramaa critics circle award as the best play of the year. The things i like the most aout this book is how the family in the book go throught so much drama and still stick together and try to make it work. The ...more

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Sep 25, 2009

Chanei 2010 rated it

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What happens to a dream deferred?
Does it dry up
like a raisin in the sun?
Or fester like a sore--
And then run?
Does it stink like rotten meat?
Or crust and sugar over--
like a syrupy sweet?
Maybe it just sags
like a heavy load.
Or does it explode?
The reason why i really liked A Raisin in the Sun because it realates to real life in away that everyone can feel. There is nothing fake about any of the characters in the boo...more What happens to a dream deferred?
Does it dry up
like a raisin in the sun?
Or fester like a sore--
And then run?
Does it stink like rotten meat?
Or crust and sugar over--
like a syrupy sweet?
Maybe it just sags
like a heavy load.
Or does it explode?
The reason why i really liked A Raisin in the Sun because it realates to real life in away that everyone can feel. There is nothing fake about any of the characters in the book. As you read, you tend to find someone that you know. The conflict of tyhe story is so real that you feel it and makes you believe you are apart of the story in someway. The themes of the book are so real because everyone can feel the emotion in them. In this essay, I will explain how these things ultimatly made me love the book A Raisin in the Sun .
A Raisin in the Sun interest me because of the conflicts the book contains. Some of the conflicts include: man vs. man, man vs. himself, and man vs. society. Walter lee constantly argues with his mother about the insurance money. This relates to real life because, children and there parents argue every day. Man vs. himself is a conflict in the book because, Walter Lee constantly condemns himself to a worthless future. This ties into everyday life because when people use the word cant, they condemn themselves to a worthless future. Man vs. society because the community of claybourn park tried to convince the younger family not to move to there nieborhood because the color off there skin. People must deal with racism and predjudice everyday.
Another reason why I like the play A Raisin in the Sun is because of the characters that interact through out the book. Take Walter Lee for example, in the play, he is very niave when he trusts someone else with is money and then they run off with it. Walter Lee changes because whenit really comes down to it, he makes the right choices. this relates to real lfe in the way that walter lee is the essance of some students who play around but when it comes down to it they do what they need to do. Another character in the play that stood out to me was mama. Mama was the back bone of the family pushing her chilren because she knew the potential they had. This relates to the everyday women, pushing and challenging there children to be th best that they could possibly be. The last character that really stood out was Mr. linder. In the story, linder is the biggest concrete antagonist though, he represents a more abstract antagonist, racism. Linder represents the evil of the human mind. The same evil that everyone must face in some way or another.
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Jul 05, 2011

Danielle rated it

Another one I was surprised I liked so much. Sure it's a classic, but sometimes they don't live up to the hype (ahem, Black Like Me, ahem). Hansberry does more than present the often-used story of black people coming out of poverty amidst racial discrimination, examining consequences of poverty (like aborition), the predicament of the young educated black, African-American estranged attitudes toward "the Motherland" most of us know and/or care little about, and most poignant of all in ...more

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Apr 13, 2011

Patrick Mitchell rated it

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This book actually made me angry while reading it. The details are fuzzy as to exactly why it upset me so much, but it was not the emotion that the author probably wanted me to feel. Hansberry probably expected me to give an "awww" and feel bad for her characters and then clutch the book to my chest sigh and say "how relevant." Wrong. It's truly hard for me to write a comment about this without turning the comment box into a guide of "Swears and Curse Words You Should Us...more

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Quotes from A Raisin in the Sun

“Beneatha: Love him? There is nothing left to love.

Mama: There is always something left to love. And if you ain't learned that, you ain't learned nothing. (Looking at her) Have you cried for that boy today? I don't mean for yourself and for the family 'cause we lost the money. I mean for him: what he been through and what it done to him. Child, when do you think is the time to love somebody the most? When they done good and made things easy for everybody? Well then, you ain't through learning - because that ain't the time at all. It's when he's at his lowest and can't believe in hisself 'cause the world done whipped him so! when you starts measuring somebody, measure him right, child, measure him right. Make sure you done taken into account what hills and valleys he come through before he got to wherever he is.” — 26 people liked it

“Beneatha: You didn't tell us what Alaiyo means... for all I know, you might be calling me Little Idiot or something...
...
Asagai: It means... it means One for Whom Bread--Food--Is Not Enough.” — 5 people liked it

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