A Raisin in the Sun 2

A Raisin in the Sun
Lorraine Hansberry

The setting of A Raisin in the Sun plays a huge role in the actions, feelings, and thoughts of the characters.  In Chicago in the 1950-60's, there were different sections of town for different races and black people still could not do everything that they wanted to.  The Younger family lived all together in one small apartment and they all had jobs, yet they could not move up in the world.  Beneatha is a great example of this because she wants to further her education and become a doctor to help others.  Female doctors were not common at that time period, much less African American female doctors.  I also think that the setting influenced the generation gap between Lena and Beneatha.  Throughout the first Act, they have a few disagreements over current issues, and she doesn't understand why Beneatha does not want to marry George, who is wealthy and can offer her a better way of life.  The modern woman in Beneatha wants her own career and wants to be dependent on solely herself.  The setting of the play also has significant impact on Lena who just wants to provide for her family, but also to keep them on the moral track, despite what society is demonstrating.  Again with the generation gap, Mama, in response to Beneatha's calling her brother "a flip," asks helplessly "What's a flip?" (Hansberry, page 49).  The obvious age difference creates conflict between many of the characters because the world was just different when Lena was just thirty.  Lastly, Ruth was greatly impacted by the setting of their lives when she decided to get an abortion because she feared they could not care for the child financially and possibly because Walter would not want another child.