A Raisin in the Sun

1. A Raisin in the Sun A play by Lorraine Hansberry

2. About the AuthorLorraine Hansberry • Born: May 19, 1930 in Chicago, Illinois • First black, female playwright • Heavily involved in civil rights • Granddaughter of a freed slave

3. Not a typical upbringing Parents were well educated and successful citizens Outspoken civil rights advocates Dropped out of the University of Wisconsin after 2 years Moved to NYC to become a writer Became associate editor of Freedom, a progressive black magazine Worked with W.E.B. DuBois Met Langston Hughes—an inspirational poet About the AuthorLorraine Hansberry

4. About the AuthorLorraine Hansberry • 1953: Married song writer Robert Nemiroff; divorced in 1964 • 1959: “A Raisin in the Sun” opened on Broadway • 1964: “The Sign in Sidney Brustein’s Window”—the only completed work produced in her lifetime • 1965: Died on January 12 in New York City of pancreatic cancer

5. Inspiration for “A Raisin in the Sun” • 1926-1948: Restrictive covenants (or legal contracts) were used nationwide to ban people of color from purchasing homes in white communities. • 1938: Lorraine Hansberry’s family moved to an all white neighborhood in Chicago. • Led to a civil rights case

6. Inspiration for “A Raisin in the Sun” • 1940: 80% of property in Chicago carried restrictive covenants; forbidding black families to live in certain Chicago communities. • 1940: U.S. Supreme Court case Hansberry v. Lee • Restrictive covenants were ruled illegal in their neighborhood • 1968: Racially restrictive covenants became illegal through the Fair Housing Act. • Residential patterns created by racially restrictive covenants still exist today.

7. Inspiration for “A Raisin in the Sun” HARLEM by Langston Hughes 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? • What happens when dreams are ignored, or postponed? • Hughes was addressing the situation of blacks in America, who had been denied the American dreams of education, career and purchasing power

8. A Raisin in the Sun • Type of work: Play • Setting(Time): Between 1945-1959 • Setting (Place): South Side Chicago • Tone: Realistic • Conflict: A working class family struggles against economic hardship and racial prejudice.

9. A Raisin in the Sun • Themes • The importance of dreams • The importance of family • The need to fight racial discrimination • Issues Addressed • Poverty • Race relations • Gender relations • This was the first play to portray black characters, themes, and conflicts in a natural and realistic manner.

10. A Raisin in the Sun • Black vernacular is used throughout the play. • The dialect of English often spoken by African Americans in urban and southern regions of the United States. • Characterized by: • Diction (word choice) • Pronunciation (how a word is said) • Use of the word “be” • Tendency to delete the –s ending of verbs • Use of the word “done” to stress the completion of an act

11. A Raisin in the Sun • Questions we will explore… • How do dreams motivate people? • Is it dangerous to place too much emphasis on materialistic things? • How important is family happiness?

12. A Raisin in the Sun on Broadway 1959 2014

13. A Raisin in the Sunon Film 1961 2008