A Raisin in the Sun

Consider the Langston Hughes poem “Harlem,” from which Lorraine Hansberry takes the name of the play. How does the play illustrate the ideas in the poem? What is the message of the poem? How does this translate in the play? Who or what is the “raisin in the sun”?

The end of the play leaves the future of the characters open. For instance, the audience never learns whether Beneatha goes to Africa. Two playwrights, Bruce Norris—with his 2010 play Clybourne Park—and Kwame Kwei-Armah—with the 2013 play Beneatha’s Place—wrote works that speculated upon what may have happened next for the characters. How would you continue their stories? What do you think happens next?

A Raisin in the Sun depicts a working-class Black family and the events surrounding the moment that they receive a large influx of cash. How does money function in the play? What does it mean to different characters? What do you think the play says about money?

Consider Beneatha’s two suitors: Joseph Asagai and George Murchison. How do they function in the play? What purpose do they serve? How are they the same, and how are they different? Do you think Beneatha should choose one of them? Why or why not? Use evidence from the text to support your argument.

In 1931, James Truslow Adams coined the term “American Dream” to describe the sentiment embedded in the Declaration of Independence that anyone, regardless of their circumstances of birth, has the ability to pursue and achieve their dreams. What does the American Dream mean to you? How is the American Dream present in A Raisin in the Sun? What does it mean to different characters? In what ways is the play commenting on the American Dream?

What is the significance of children to the Younger family? How does Travis, as the only child in the play, support your claim? What about Ruth’s pregnancy?

A Raisin in the Sun is not only still widely produced, but is also canonized and included as required reading in many high school and college curriculums. How do you think the play speaks to a current audience? What still seems particularly pertinent? Is there anything that has not aged well? How might you address those issues by either stressing what is relevant or managing what is outdated, if you were producing the play?

A Raisin in the Sun, in 1959, was the first Broadway play written by a Black woman as well as the first to be directed by a Black director. Audiences were predominantly white. Do you think that white audiences ought to be the target for this play? How do you think the play speaks to white audiences? How might the play speak differently to an audience primarily made up of people of color?