Wangyue Zhou, Grade 11
UWCSEA Dover Campus

When asked about one book that I genuinely love, A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry popped up in my mind. The author, who was known for this masterpiece, became the first African-American female to have a play performed on Broadway. She also won the New York Drama Critics' Circle Award for this book— making her the first African-American dramatist, the fifth woman, and the youngest playwright to do so. (Wikipedia) Hansberry's family had struggled against segregation, challenging a restrictive covenant in the 1940 US Supreme Court case. After she moved to New York City, Hansberry worked at the Pan-Africanist newspaper Freedom, where she worked with other intellectuals such as W. E. B. Du Bois. (Wikipedia) Much of her work during that time concerned the African struggles for liberation and their impact on the world, so did A Raisin in the Sun. Originally published in 1959, the play tells of a Black family's experiences in south Chicago, as they attempt to improve their financial circumstances with an insurance payout following the death of the father, and deals with matters of discrimination, racism, and assimilation. According to Washington Post, the book was “one of a handful of great American plays——it belongs in the inner cycle, along with Death of a Salesman, Long Day’s Journey Into Night and The Glass Menagerie“. Two years later in 1961, a film with the same name adapted from the play was released. I came across the book at the beginning of this year in the school library. I fell in love with the book for its winding plot and various authorial choices immediately. The first time I read it, I felt confused because it does not make sense in modern United States society. However, when I considered the historical background on which the book was based, I could tell why the story was written in this particular order, tone, and style. My perception of discrimination, racism, and assimilation was on another level. When Ruth said, "Honey… life don't have to be like this. I mean sometimes people can do things so that things are better… You remember how we used to talk when Travis was born… about the way we were going to live… the kind of house… Well, it's all starting to slip away from us." She was talking to her husband Walter, encouraging him to recall the confident way they once discussed the future, and all the plans they made together. This quote inspired me to pursue my dreams bravely. Achieving our own goals is what we’re living for. I would recommend this play to readers for its inspiring nature. The American dream, as what it’s called, is what we are aiming to achieve.

Works cited
Wikipedia Contributors. “A Raisin in the Sun.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 1 May 2019, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Raisin_in_the_Sun. Accessed 26 July 2022.
---. “Lorraine Hansberry.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 13 May 2019, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lorraine_Hansberry. Accessed 26 July 2022.

Image Courtesy: ​https://info.umkc.edu/womenc/2017/09/28/a-raisin-in-the-sun-this-1950s-play-is-still-important/