What is the major theme in A Raisin in the Sun? Dreams and dreams deferred are the central themes in the play. Each character has a dream of their own and in some way, each of their dreams conflicts with someone else’s dream. Mama has a dream to move her family into a bigger home.
What happens in Act 1 Scene 1 raisin in the sun?
It is morning at the Youngers’ apartment. Their small dwelling on the South Side of Chicago has two bedrooms—one for Mama and Beneatha, and one for Ruth and Walter Lee. Travis sleeps on the couch in the living room. The only window is in their small kitchen, and they share a bathroom in the hall with their neighbors.
What is the mood of A Raisin in the Sun Act 1?
The tone of A Raisin in the Sun is somber, and the opening scene clearly establishes this tone. According to Hansberry’s set description, the apartment itself is tired, full of furniture that has seen many years of use. For her part, Ruth seems just as exhausted as the apartment.
What is the climax of A Raisin in the Sun Act 1?
Climax Bobo tells the Youngers that Willy has run off with all of Walter’s invested insurance money; Asagai makes Beneatha realize that she is not as independent as she thinks.
What is Walter’s dream in Act 1?
Walter Lee wants to invest Mama’s $10,000 insurance check in a liquor store venture with two of his friends. Because of her religious convictions against liquor drinking, Mama is uninterested in Walter’s dream of getting rich quickly with this scheme.
What happens in Act 1 Scene 2 of a raisin in the sun?
Summary: Act I, scene ii. Once upon a time freedom used to be life—now it’s money. The next day, Saturday, the Youngers are cleaning their apartment and waiting for the insurance check to arrive. Walter receives a phone call from his friend Willy Harris, who is coordinating the potential liquor store venture.
What is the main message of a raisin in the sun?
At the heart of Hansberry’s ‘A Raisin in the Sun’ is the universal message of the desire for social progress amid the differing opinions on how to achieve it. A Raisin in the Sun is a play about an African American family aspiring to move beyond segregation and disenfranchisement in 1950s Chicago.
Why did Ruth collapse at the end of Act I sc i?
Answer and Explanation: Ruth collapses after her exhaustion, stress, and new pregnancy gets the best of her. She knows that they cannot afford another child, nor can they take the stress that comes with pregnancy, as their situation is bad enough already.
What did Beneatha do to her hair?
Beneatha’s Hair
When the play begins, Beneatha has straightened hair. Midway through the play, after Asagai visits her and questions her hairstyle, she cuts her Caucasian-seeming hair. Her new, radical afro represents her embracing of her heritage.
What does Mama’s plant symbolize?
Mama’s Plant
Her care for her plant is similar to her care for her children, unconditional and unending despite a less-than-perfect environment for growth. The plant also symbolizes her dream to own a house and, more specifically, to have a garden and a yard.
What is the irony in A Raisin in the Sun?
Everything Walter says when Bobo first makes his entrance is an example of dramatic irony. While Walter is asking Bobo to “tell him how things went in Springfield,” the audience immediately guesses the outcome. Even the other characters on stage become aware of the impending doom long before Walter does.
What happens to Ruth at the end of the scene?
Before we get to the Byrde family, the big news item coming out of the Ozark finale instead surrounds Ruth Langmore. While the Byrdes may get a happy ending, Ruth doesn’t. She was shot and killed by Camila Navarro, the new cartel boss.
What are 3 conflicts in A Raisin in the Sun?
Conflicts in an American Family in play A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry The play “A Raisin in the Sun” illustrates three main conflicts in the younger family life; they are internal, social, and interpersonal.
What’s Beneatha’s dream?
Beneatha grieves for her dying dream of becoming a doctor. She no longer believes she can attain her goal because the source for tuition money has dried up. She explains that, in her view, curing people is a real way of providing miracles for others.
Did Walter achieve his dream?
Walter decided to sacrifice his dream of opening a liquor store, just to obtain respect from his family and his manhood again. For him it was a tough decision since he was already suffering, but at the end he ended up giving up on money and prove his family that he is proud and that he is not blinded by wealth.
Why does Beneatha have to wait to use the bathroom?
Water gets angry; he wants his wife to nod, smile, and support him. Beneatha Younger, also referred to as Bennie, emerges from the left bedroom. She wants to use the bathroom but those dratted neighbors and their bodily functions prevent her from doing so.
Why does Ruth want an abortion?
She contemplates an abortion, for example, not because she wants to, but because she is worried about the additional burden she would bring to the family that she already has. Still, Ruth is not an “emotional weakling.” She never raises her voice (as Walter does quite often), but she exhibits a remarkable strength.
Does Ruth get an abortion in a raisin in the sun?
Does Ruth get an abortion in ”A Raisin in the Sun”? When Ruth finds out she is pregnant, she considers an abortion. However, in the end she decides not to get one because she and her family are moving into a house and she belives they can support a new baby.
What page does Ruth talk about abortion?
The part that’s already living” (1.2. 235). Though Ruth hates the idea of aborting her child, she feels it’s the best decision for her financially-strapped family.
Why is it called raisin in the sun?
The play’s title is taken from “Harlem,” a poem by Langston Hughes, which examines the question “What happens to a dream deferred?/Does it dry up/like a raisin in the sun?” This penetrating psychological study of a working-class black family on the south side of Chicago in the late 1940s reflected Hansberry’s own
Is A Raisin in the Sun based on a true story?
The events of the play, which portrays an African-American family’s effort to improve their lives by buying a home in a racially restricted neighborhood, are based on true events to a degree not fully appreciated by many theatergoers (or at least this one).