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A Raisin in the Sun
One insurance check. Five people. Five different dreams. And one man deciding what his dignity is worth. ☀️
Who it's for
The Youngers' crowded apartment holds five people, one bathroom down the hall and several incompatible dreams: Walter's liquor store, Beneatha's medical school, Mama's house with a garden, Ruth's simple wish for room.
Feelings it meets
What it is
A Raisin in the Sun is Lorraine Hansberry's play, which premiered on Broadway and was published by Random House in 1959. It follows the Younger family, Walter Lee, his wife Ruth, their son Travis, his sister Beneatha and his mother Lena (Mama), who share a cramped apartment on Chicago's South Side. After the family patriarch dies, a $10,000 life insurance check brings their competing dreams into conflict.
Where to find it
In print (Vintage / Penguin), widely in libraries (Libby/Hoopla); audio recordings of the play exist. Not public domain. The 1961 film adaptation is widely available.
Before you start
Heads up: Racism and housing discrimination.
Age: Ages 12+
Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.Leo Tolstoy, Anna Karenina, Part 1, Chapter 1 (tr. Constance Garnett)
