A Raisin In The Sun Assimilation Essay

1781 Words8 Pages

Assimilation or the refusal to assimilate was and has been present throughout the United States and examples of such can be seen in plays like, “Los Vendidos” and “A Raisin In The Sun”. Assimilation is defined by dictionary.com as: the process of adapting or adjusting to the culture of a group or nation. Lorraine Hansberry was against assimilation and instead wanted to introduce integration, being a part of the routines and traditions but maintaining heritage, by writing “A Raisin in the Sun”, she wanted to show her stance for the African Americans to take pride in their heritage and to not assimilate to all the views of white Americans. “Los Vendidos” tries to portray a similar theme but instead uses satirical humor and symbolism. Every country faces the issue of assimilating new people into new places, but many think only immigrants have this issue. However, many who have already migrated into society but are deeply rooted in their heritage have the same issue because they want to hold on to the traditions that give respect to their ancestors. The line between assimilation and integration is and was a huge debate especially during the time “A Raisin in the Sun” was written, 1950s, and as each decade passes more races or …show more content…

In order to understand why Valdez wanted to write such a play it is as equally important to know the circumstances of Valdez’s childhood. His parents were migrant farmers and had 9 siblings, despite these hardships he granted high school and received a scholarship to a state college. He created a theatre and with that he wanted to write plays that inspired the Mexican culture in a humorous, yet serious. Luis Valdez wanted to address the topic of assimilate and wrote “Los Vendidos” for the purpose of lowering the societal pressures of assimilation and to show how “silly” it is to put a premium on those who assimilated (Navarette