A Raisin in the Sun is a play about the Younger family, consisting of five members: Mama, Walter, Ruth, Beneatha, and Travis. Each character plays a distinct role in the family dynamic, but some carry more weight than others.
While others might say that Walter is the worst and even drags down the family, I take a less critical approach. I fully admit that Walter, at times disgusts me, as he is the type of man who would waste his family's hard-earned money in a casino. However, he carries this sort of judgement with the risk he takes playing the role of a Lone Ranger. Diverging from the norm, Walter makes decisions alone, which will not always satisfy everyone.
Another influential character is Walter's sister Beneatha. Portrayed as an untraditional and progressive woman, Beneatha is nearly perceived as Gandhi. In such a way, Beneatha's character provides verisimilitude by prompting to compare her to Walter as the better sibling. While she defies conventional images of an African American woman, she targets this culturally-motivating fire, at times, unjustly. She embraces her African roots and culture while unnecessarily shutting down American culture, represented by jazz music.
Meanwhile, the other two women share a similar quality. Mama and Ruth seem to go with the flow, and because of this, are less controversial figures. However, this characteristic can be quite counterproductive. Mama and Ruth repeatedly attempt to force their other family members into a role they're born into. Mama encourages Walter to act in the same manner as his father and to take the lead as the "man of the household." On the other hand, Ruth quietly pushes Beneatha to take a more traditional domestic role, like marrying George. These subtle actions can be quite detrimental, though, and unintentionally facilitate profiling. By forcing conventional standards unto people, society continues to judge a person based on their physical traits.
While others might say that Walter is the worst and even drags down the family, I take a less critical approach. I fully admit that Walter, at times disgusts me, as he is the type of man who would waste his family's hard-earned money in a casino. However, he carries this sort of judgement with the risk he takes playing the role of a Lone Ranger. Diverging from the norm, Walter makes decisions alone, which will not always satisfy everyone.
Another influential character is Walter's sister Beneatha. Portrayed as an untraditional and progressive woman, Beneatha is nearly perceived as Gandhi. In such a way, Beneatha's character provides verisimilitude by prompting to compare her to Walter as the better sibling. While she defies conventional images of an African American woman, she targets this culturally-motivating fire, at times, unjustly. She embraces her African roots and culture while unnecessarily shutting down American culture, represented by jazz music.
Meanwhile, the other two women share a similar quality. Mama and Ruth seem to go with the flow, and because of this, are less controversial figures. However, this characteristic can be quite counterproductive. Mama and Ruth repeatedly attempt to force their other family members into a role they're born into. Mama encourages Walter to act in the same manner as his father and to take the lead as the "man of the household." On the other hand, Ruth quietly pushes Beneatha to take a more traditional domestic role, like marrying George. These subtle actions can be quite detrimental, though, and unintentionally facilitate profiling. By forcing conventional standards unto people, society continues to judge a person based on their physical traits.
Sabrina I love your analysis of the characters and the way you incorporated the puzzle pieces - they were flawless! I can tell you put some thought into this and I love the way you compared Walter to a lone ranger and Beneatha to Gandhi! I definitely agree with your overall claim that society still judges people based on their appearance and physical traits by forcing conventional standards on them. This is so unfair, and that's why Walter and Beneatha were so influential - because they tried to change the standards, and break the boundaries! That was unheard of in this time, so I just love the example they both set in that respect. I think A Raisin in the Sun as a whole is so influential and inspiring, but those two in particular have the potential to make a big impact in someone's life through their examples of defiance, courage, and determination.
ReplyDeleteI really liked how you used the puzzle words to describe the characters! I also really liked how you contrasted the difference in some of the characters too.
ReplyDeleteThe way you implemented the puzzle words was really creative! I also liked how you displayed Walter, which is how I thought of him as well. This is a great analysis!!
ReplyDeleteI love how smoothly the puzzle words were implemented; it was a very subtle change yet made the post flow very smoothly. I also loved the interesting comparison of Beneatha to Ghandi- never really thought about it, but its accurate!
ReplyDeleteI really liked the style you used in your puzzle paragraph. I also love how meaningful your analysis of the characters was and how your paragraph had cohesion and it flowed naturally.
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