Dear Students,

As we read Lorraine Hansberry’s majestic play “A Raisin in the Sun,” let’s take time to celebrate our new Federal Holiday: JUNETEENTH.  This Saturday (and every June 19^th) marks the end of slavery in the United States following the Civil War (1861-1865).  Please watch a brief video on the signing of this bill by President Biden and VP Harris as well as an article on events taking place in NYC and Brooklyn this weekend.

First View my Video Lecture: HERE

INFORMATION ABOUT SHAKESPEARE IN THE PARK (SHAKESPEARE’S “MERRY WIVES OF WINDSOR” — FREE TICKETS — NOT TO BE MISSED — SUMMER 2021)

THIS WEEK’S ASSIGNMENTS:

• Read: Lorraine Hansberry, A Raisin in the Sun (1958) 

**Download  for easier full screen reading of the pdf**

• Watch: Kenny Leon’s film version:  A Raisin in the Sun (2008)

• Post: Discuss any aspect of the play that interests you such as the setting (time, space, and place), key lines, character development, structure (division of acts, acenes), gender roles, intersectionality, the play in the context of African American history, the concept of “assimilation,” lessons (or key ideas), connections to Oedipus Rex, Lysistrata, or A Midsummer Night’s Dream, the relevance of the play for 2021, etc.
• Also discuss what you like best about the film and/or how it is different from the play.
• Read earlier student posts (and comment on one of them). Do not repeat what a student before you has posted.
• DO NOT REFER TO (OR COPY) FROM OUTSIDE MATERIAL. I WANT TO HEAR WHAT YOU THINK ABOUT THE PLAY.

Additional resources on the play, film, and author:

Book Review: Radical Vision: A Biography of Lorraine Hansberry

P. Diddy on “Raisin”  and Film Trailer

Hansberry’s NY home, important to recognize, especially during Pride

Scholar Dr. Imani Perry on Lorraine Hansberry’s family and “Raisin” (includes footage of 1961 Sidney Poitier film)

Interview with filmmaker Lenny Leon, Interview