Quests Not Dreams - A Raisin In The Sun

A detailed Summary of Quests Not Dreams - A Raisin In The Sun

Quests Not Dreams

A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry is the story of black family living in the south side of Chicago. Each member of the family has a dream, a dream that has been put off for some reason. The storyline revolves around an insurance check for $10,000. The check belongs to Mama but each character envisions a different use for the money. Through the events of the play, each person either has their dream realized or caught a glimpse of their dream being fulfilled. I believe that Beneatha, Walter, and Mama each had a quest that they were on that was separate from their dreams.

Beneatha Younger was a loud, intelligent, and fresh-mouthed woman, her dream was to be a doctor and to somehow raise her people up. When Mama set aside the money for Beneatha's education, Beneatha believed that her dream would be realized. When the money was discovered to be lost, she thought her dream blew up in smoke. This dream wasn't the quest that she was intended to do though, her quest was to find her "African side" and to connect with it. Beneatha started to fulfill this by talking to Asagai (a man from Africa). She told him, "Mr. Asagai-I want every much to talk with you. About Africa. You see, Mr.

Mama's dream was to have a house of her own with a little garden for flowers. She was the matriarch of the family, after her husband died she was the one who had to look after the well being of the family. It was Mama's job to make the decisions and to make sure that everyone grew up correctly. Mama's quest was to pass on the job of "head of the family" on to Walter and to make sure that he was ready for it. When Mama entrusted the money to Walter, she gave him the power to make the decisions for the family. This was half of her quest, the other half was fulfilled when Walter became a man and decided to move to Clybourne Park. Clybourne Park was a white neighborhood but it was the most affordable for the family. Mama had used $3,500 for a down payment on the house, but when Walter lost the money the thought of moving was questionable. It was Walter's decision to move or not, and he did. He crossed into manhood at that point, thus fulfilling the rest of Mama's quest.

Aasagai, I am looking for my identity." Asagai became a link to Africa for Beneatha, a guide to her ancestry/roots. In Act II, Beneatha shows how she has connected with her African roots by doing a ceremonial dance and by cutting her hair so that it would "natural." In Act III, Beneatha has the opportunity to connect more with her roots when Asagai proposes to her. He wants her to go with him back to Africa so that she can practice medicine over there. This would be the fulfillment of Beneatha's quest, not only does she bring out her African culture, but she also will go back and live it. Beneatha also brought out the "African" in other people

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Approximate Word count = 1091
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: English