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A Raisin In The Sun Literary Devices

920 Words4 Pages

Myker Portillo
Ms. Vicino-Coleman
Honors English 9A Period 2
January 23, 2023
A Raisin in the Sun Literary Analysis
“DAMM MY EGGS---- DAMM ALL THE EGGS THERE EVER WAS!” Walter Lee shouted furiously, slowly revealing his character for the first time.
In the play “A Raisin in the Sun," Lorraine Hansberry gives each of the characters their own distinct speaking style to reflect their individual personalities and backgrounds. This creates a sense of realism within the play and allows the audience to better understand and connect with the characters. For example, the character of Walter Lee speaks with a sense of urgency and passion, a man who is struggling to provide for his family and is desperate for a better life. On the other hand, Beneatha …show more content…

This line is just one of the others like it throughout the play, this helps to establish the character of Walter Lee as a complex and relatable individual who struggles to find an agency in a world that often works against him, he never got the chance to achieve his dream because of financial struggle and feels lost and frustrated as his dream is ‘fading’ away. Walter Lee is shouting with anger and frustration, he is not actually going to DAMM all the eggs in the world this is actually showing his annoyance at his spouse who keeps giving him eggs for breakfast and doesn't listen to his situation, his dream is to open a bar. He is a hard-working man who is struggling to provide for his family and is desperate for a better life but no one is there to support …show more content…

In Lorraine Hansberry's play "A Raisin in the Sun," the character Beneatha is a determined highly intelligent, and ambitious young woman. Throughout the play, Beneatha expresses her desire to become a doctor and is shown reading medical textbooks and engaging in discussions about the latest scientific discoveries. Additionally, she often uses sophisticated vocabulary and makes insightful observations about the world around her. For example, in Act II, Scene I, Beneatha states, "I want to be a doctor! I want to get away from the life of 'do as I say' and find out things for myself." this makes her stand out as an ambitious young woman the words such as "get away from the life of 'do as I say'," makes her stand out as a sophisticated and intelligent young woman as she doesn't want to live life the traditional way of getting a regular job she wanted to go above and beyond. Beneatha's individuality and ambition are most obvious when compared to the other characters of the play, like her mother, and sister, Walter and Ruth. Her views and desires, such as her desire to become a doctor, and a rejection of traditional views of womanhood, separated her from the traditional expectations of the time and her family, making her one of the most dynamic characters of

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In the play “A Raisin in the Sun” by Lorraine Hansberry, Beneatha is an empowered young woman whose dreams are more significant than life. Beneatha is not an actual name, but it still has a more profound significance. Hansberry creates this name to show society’s perception of Beneath in contrast to her perception of herself. Everyone around her wants to dim her light and make her more petite than she wants to be. Beneatha has had her mind set on being a doctor forever.

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He finds his dignity and tells Mr. Lindner that his “son said we was going to move and there ain't nothin left for me to say.” (Hansberry 575). At this point the full depth of his character development is obvious; one can see that he finally turned into a respectable man that cares about his family and their pride. The events in the play changed Walter Lee by growing him into a more honorable man.

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A Raisin In The Sun Allusion Analysis

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The play by Lorraine Hansberry , A Raisin In The Sun, utilizes the use of allusions in order to supply the reader with historical background. Allusions create emphasis in the play, this allows the reader to understand and appreciate the text. Within the small details of the play, the use of allusions deepen the contextual support of the text. While reading A Raisin In The Sun, various allusions appear throughout the play. These allusions reference the outside world, but also give emphasis on the importance of the piece of the text references.

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She was not like other young women that would be housewives or maids at her age but instead is independent. Looking after herself and making more of a life for herself, she attends school, tries to play guitar, and looks for a love interest. This breaks the stereotype of a “normal” woman who is a housewife or maid and shows Beneatha is different. Therefore, Beneatha overcomes this criticism of her “unnatural ways”, and proceeds to make her life successful.

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Walter’s statement tries to tell the women that he didn’t try to make the world the way it is now. Yes, he wants luxurious items for him and his wife. However, even though he seriously messed up, he’s still the man in the family and will continue to make the decisions for the

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Beneatha 's dream is to go to college and become a doctor. She wants to prove her family´s disbeliefs of her becoming a doctor wrong. Yet she feels defeated after her brother, Walter, goes out and gives away all of her college money to some man that ends up disappearing with the money. She faces challenges financially and faces backlash from her family.

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Beneatha wants to study to become a doctor, but instead Walter Lee wants to spend his family’s insurance money so he can open a liquor store with Willy and Bobo his friends and be a man. Since Walter Lee and his family were in a bad position and were very poor it was Walter Younger’s responsibility to keep the family together and he saw this a very big responsibility. He frequently complained about being a chauffeur and ridding rich people, every day when he woke up in the morning. He would always fight with his wife Ruth, Mama and his sister Beneatha. For instance (Hansberry 32-34) he says to Ruth his wife “You tired, ain’t you?

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She wants to become a doctor and get the education she needs to become one. Throughout the play she proves that her independence means a lot to her. Beneatha wants to be free and have her own life, just like the American Dream. In the play she says to Mama and Ruth, “Listen, I’m going to be a doctor. I’m not worried about who I’m going to marry yet-if I ever get married” (Hansberry32).

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In A Raisin in the Sun, a play written by Lorraine Hansberry, the audience was able to obtain a sense of the struggle for the American dream. We are introduced to the Youngerś a black family living in the Southside of Chicago around the 1950’s. Each member of this family has their own meaning to what is the American dream. A Raisin in the Sun teaches us that even though life might be full of conflicts, it is important to not give up on our dreams.

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The Raisin In The Sun Symbolism Essay

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The eggs and food mentioned in the play symbolized the deterioration of Ruth and Walter's marriage. In the beginning of Act one, Walter talks to Ruth about his dreams

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Reader Response: 3 “A Raisin in the Sun” by Lorraine Hansberry, is a play about a black families experience in 1950s South Side Chicago. The story revolves around what happens to the family when Lena Younger, the matriarch of the family, receives a ten thousand dollar life insurance check upon the death of her husband. Everyone from the family has different plans for what they want to do with the money. Lena Younger serves as the head of the family. She is Walter and Beneatha’s caring mother so they and Ruth call her Mama.

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Personal Identity In A Raisin In The Sun

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In Act 1, Beneatha’s quest to find her personal identity is seen in the way she expresses herself, her ambitions, her roots and the way she deviates from what is acceptable in her family. She tries to find ways to express herself such as trying different hobbies. In the past, Beneatha has been a part of a play-acting group, horseback-riding club, and in Act 1 starts guitar lessons (47). She also has the ambition to become a doctor which is looked down upon by her brother, Walter Lee (38). Additionally, her African roots are important to her search for identity.

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She defies the ideal life for a woman and expresses her opinion loud and clear. Beneatha throughout the play finds herself and her African American roots. Walter does not approve of Beneatha’s hopes to become a doctor he tells her, “If you so crazy ‘bout messing ‘round with sick people---then go be a nurse like other women---or just get married and be quiet. . .” (1.1.125) These social issues that the characters faced in their lives made them out to be the people that they were meant to be.

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Beneatha dreams to be a doctor, which is a male-dominated profession. She says, “I am going to be a doctor and everybody around here better understand that!” (Hansberry 33). This shows her feminist attitude in the play when Beneatha takes a largely optimistic stance when facing troubles of entering a male-dominated profession, implying that she is a ‘non-conformist’. Additionally, Beneatha refuses to “just get married and be quiet” (Hansberry 22), as her chauvinistic brother, Walter Lee, expects her to be.

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