Raisin in the Sun Flashcards
Causes of the Great Migration
jobs in factories, education, escape racism
Effects of the Great Migration
Integrated Northern cities, African culture centers, racism
Sharecropping
a tenant farmer who gives part of each crop as rent
Life for Gilles family as sharecroppers
Unstable, difficult, limited education
Relationship between kids of Giles and Wheelers
no tension, treated each other equally
How did Gile’s children achieve dream
Purchased the house, treated as equal
restrictive covenants
provision in a property deed preventing sale to a person of particular race or religion, created slums
redlining
A process by which banks draw lines on a map and refuse to lend money to purchase or improve property within the boundaries, contributed to slums
challenges for black people obtaining homes
redlining, restrictive covenants, not shown many properties, poor loans
evidence housing discrimination still occurs?
17% saw more properties, fewer offers on loans, not shown as many homes, showings or offers refused
change since 1950s?
more hidden, realtors steer you around
How does the article connect to Beneatha
wants to understand heritage, display and honor heritage
How does poem relate to characters?
highs and lows, rollercoaster of emotion
how is imagery used?
pictures we can visualize to connect to story
Big Walter
He worked himself to death for his family. He loved his children and wanted them to have dreams they could accomplish. He wanted his children to do something-be something. He also had many flaws: hard-headed, mean, wild with women. He felt the “black man” was not given the same opportunity as the white man.
Mama
Walter and Beneatha’s mother. She wants to use the insurance money to get a house in a better neighborhood. She worries about her family falling apart.
Walter Lee Younger
The protagonist of the play. Walter is a dreamer. He wants to be rich and devises plans to acquire wealth with his friends, particularly Willy Harris. When the play opens, he wants to invest his father’s insurance money in a new liquor store venture. He spends the rest of the play endlessly preoccupied with discovering a quick solution to his family’s various problems.
Ruth Younger
Walter’s wife and Travis’ mother. Ruth takes care of the Youngers’ small apartment. Her marriage to Walter has problems, but she hopes to rekindle their love. She is about thirty, but her weariness makes her seem older. Constantly fighting poverty and domestic troubles, she continues to be an emotionally strong woman. Her almost pessimistic pragmatism helps her to survive.
Travis
Walter and Ruth’s young son. Eager to help his family. Plays outside with the rats. Sleeps on the sofa because there is no room.
Beneatha
Mama’s daughter and Walter’s sister. In college, and better educated than the rest of her family. She wants to be a doctor. She has had many hobbies; Afrocentrism is her latest cause.
Asagai
college friend of Beneatha; he’s from Nigeria, Africa; accuses Beneatha of assimilationism; brings her a gift from Africa; proposes to Beneatha so she will marry him and move to Nigeria and practice medicine there
George Murchison
A wealthy, African-American man who courts Beneatha. The Youngers approve of George, but Beneatha dislikes his willingness to submit to white culture and forget his African heritage. He challenges the thoughts and feelings of other black people through his arrogance and flair for intellectual competition.
Mrs. Johnson
The Youngers’ neighbor. Mrs. Johnson takes advantage of the Youngers’ hospitality and warns them about moving into a predominately white neighborhood.
Mr. Linder
A person who offers more money so that the family doesn’t move into the house, is forcibly shut down by Walter at the end of the play.
