Lorraine Hansberry's A Raisin In The Sun

1061 Words5 Pages
A symbol is something that has a deeper meaning than the object, person, or action itself. The story “A Raisin in the Sun” by Lorraine Hansberry uses many everyday objects to represent a deeper meaning in the story. Even the title has symbolism. The dreams of each of the characters are represented by a raisin that is drying up in the sun, just as their dreams are drying up as the play continues. The symbols, once understood, enhance the story to be something much more than we see at first glance. Mama has a plant that she keeps in the only window in the apartment. This plant is surviving but is not thriving. It does not have the adequate amount of sunlight nor nutrients to grow into what it could be. The roots are all confined in one pot. In the beginning of the story when Mama first appears, the stage directions show us that she is persistent in taking care of this plant. Mama’s love and care of this plant represents all of the love and…show more content…
Travis Younger is the son of Walter Lee Younger and Ruth Younger. He is around eleven years old. He does not have much dialogue throughout the story, but he does play an important role. He is still an innocent boy and can represent hope for a newer generation. At the end of the play, Mama tells Travis “No. Travis you stay right here. And you make him understand what you doing, Walter Lee. You teach him good. Like Willy Harris taught you…,” but she is specifically directing this statement to Walter (793). Travis standing near his father kept Walter from acting inappropriately, showing that Travis represents the good in Walter. When Walter sees his son grinning at him innocently, he cannot act in a way he would not want his son to behave. All the adults in the house have higher standards for Travis to live up to. They do not want him to struggle in life as they all are and symbolically can represent a bond between them and the new neighbors they are going to
Open Document