A Raisin in the Sun Relevance Essay Example

Does one’s race determine how he or she is treated? This question has been asked for generations, and the short answer is yes; however, what exactly constitutes racial discrimination, and how do authors represent this issue in their works? Lorraine Hansberry is an African American playwright primarily famous for her work A Raisin in the Sun about an African American family living in the Chicago southside. This work shows all the issues on race, discrimination, and segregation at the time it was written, and the play still shows relevance even generations after being first written and performed. Lorraine Hansberry’s representation of these things and the play's constant relevance shows that race still plays a role in humans’ day-to-day lives. Hansberry's character development and setting, in addition to her use of the cultural, social, and political climate of the late 1950s as part of the play, reveals that race serves as a detrimental roadblock toward socioeconomic equity, both in the time of A Raisin in the Sun and now.

Mama’s belief that the way the Youngers live is expected is likely a result of growing up with systemic racism, but this presents a key point that A Raisin in the Sun portrays. Mama shows this with her line “in my time we was worried about not being lynched and getting to the North if we could and how to stay alive and still have a pinch of dignity too” (Raisin 1.2). Around World War two, when the play was written, many white families did not want anything to do with African American families, and this was even more true during Mama’s childhood growing up in the South. White families would go to unimaginable lengths to prevent the progress of black families from achieving their goals and dreams, and while this was true during Mama’s childhood, Hansberry uses this line to convey the reality that things have not changed over the decades. The Younger family struggles more than necessary due to the white suburban families’ plea for them not to move into their neighborhood. A Raisin in the Sun uses Mama’s memories of racial discrimination to display that although the Youngers have attempted to move and change to advance in society, systemic racism is still prevalent in their world and is a hindrance to them and other African American families.

The deeply embedded history of racism contributes to the fact that one’s skin color has the potential to determine who one will be and what one will achieve. In act two of the play, Beneatha is shown embracing her African roots and chanting a native song. Historically, different genres of music are associated with different races and ethnicities. In a biographical book, The Roof of a Southern Home, it is stated that blues music “informs the audience that this family is a part of a history and culture that is voiced in the South through the instruments of black Americans and will continue long into the future with other forms of music from other continents” (Murray). The idea that music alone can potentially determine where one stands in society is a shocking statement; however, it reigns true for the Youngers. Embracing past heritage seems to only bring the family further from achieving their goals and living a normal suburban life. White families notice the African descent, whether it be by skin color or the clothes on the family’s back, and immediately attempt to prevent the family from living like them. With everyone appearing to be working against African Americans, just because of their skin and heritage, life becomes very difficult, and poverty begins to take over each family. Hansberry, growing up with heavy discrimination, understood all these issues, and it was her goal to aid these families. In Commitment and Complexity: Lorraine Hansberry’s Life in Action, it is stated, “Actually, of course, Hansberry's whole way of life was a repudiation of the limitations that society has tried to place on women. Instead of seeking fulfillment in the traditional limiting roles of homemaker, mother, pillar of the church, and sexual toy, she sought it in the same areas men did- in artistic creation, in intellectual speculation, in political struggle, in public speaking, and in the pursuit of knowledge about all aspects of life. She peopled her dramas with many powerful female characters whose strength was like that of their creator, but others of her characters were la their efforts to accept the socially-dictated roles” (Carter). This goes to explain the characterization she placed into all the women in A Raisin in the Sun, especially Ruth and Beneatha. The two women understand that they are at major disadvantages in life just because of their gender and skin color; however, they do not let that stop them from doing everything in their power to build a life for themselves and their family. The nonconformity to stereotypical roles creates Hansberry’s main message of the play: for change to take place, there must be a change in each person, and they must fight for it.

Hansberry effectively reveals the tense cultural, social, and political climate of the time through the play’s plot, aiding the effect of the racist roadblocks in which the Youngers experience. Beneatha and Ruth are seen talking about the man Beneatha is seeing, saying “Benethea: Oh, I just mean I couldn’t ever really be serious about George. He’s-he’s so shallow.

Ruth: Shallow-what do you mean shallow? He’s rich!” (Raisin 1.1). The nature of African American families to bypass the discrimination was to marry rich so one could climb the social/political ladder more easily. If one did not do this, it is more than likely they will not achieve anything in their lifetime because no one would respect them enough to allow them to move, change jobs, or anything else. Ruth is noticeably happy that Beneatha has found a rich man that likes her; however, Beneatha does not have true feelings for him and would rather be happy than marry a man just because of the advantages it would give her and her family. This is a respectable and mature quality Hansberry gives to Beneatha, once again tying into her attempt at showcasing the nonconformity of the women in the Younger family. Additionally, the Youngers have a difficult time due to the cultural climate, as stated in The Roof of a Southern Home, “Not only did northern whites reject and marginalize Southern blacks, but large numbers of native northern blacks did so as well, seeing the Southerners as potential threats to their material and social accomplishments” (Carter). Since Mama moved to Chicago from the south, this line reveals that the Youngers have a harder time than most other families in Chicago, again tying into their heritage, both of African and southern descent. It is a bold statement to say that local northern African Americans want to keep the southerners in the south, but it is seen as true at that time. It is an important detail to take note of, and it aids in portraying the tension between ethnicities and races in the time after World War Two. 

Through the embedded history of racism and the social and cultural climate of the world, Hansberry effectively displays how racism is one of the sole factors in the Youngers' hardships; however, the aforementioned roots of the issue of racism are still extremely prevalent in today’s world. There is a purpose for A Raisin in the Sun to be taught in classrooms even decades after its release. One can read and observe this play and see similarities between the events on the stage and in the real world today. In a short book titled White Fear, the author declares “new dialogue about race is kept to a minimum, but the mise-en-scène and cinematography suggested in the script reflects Hansberry’s scathing critique of racism” (Ingle 5). Hansberry never explicitly comments on the discrimination presented in the play; however, the events speak for themselves. The Norton Introduction to Literature textbook declares “A Raisin in the sun was a ‘historical achievement’ precisely because of its realism and contemporaneity, its truthful depiction of the sorts of lives lived by many ordinary African Americans in the late 1950s” (Mays 1498). The setting of the Southside of Chicago, a notoriously African American populated area, Beneatha’s dating between Joseph Asagai and George Murchison, and Mama’s experiences of systemic racism allows Hansberry to describe the issues presented in society during her lifetime; however, these issues are still imbedded in the world's minds, making one see it as normal. The issue of race is prevalent worldwide, and there are still people who believe they have an advantage over another solely due to one’s skin color. A Raisin in the Sun stays relevant to this day and continues to shine a light on incorrect treatment and the slowing of different races in achieving their goals.

One's race serves as a determining factor for livelihood both in the time of A Raisin in the Sun and now. Hansberry uses Mama’s character to display the wrongful acceptance of systemic racism around the world, and white families would bribe, or even harass African Americans to stymie their advancements. Just the music that one associates themselves with has the potential to determine how they are treated, and Hansberry’s thoughtful plot creation thoroughly displays the constant roadblocks the Youngers face each day. Finally, the relevance of A Raisin in the Sun today reveals that the issues in the play are still happening today. In conclusion, Lorraine Hansberry uses her play to protest the wrongful treatment of African Americans during and after World War Two, and the creation of this play allows for generations of people to know and understand the issue of discrimination among races.