I love Ruth!

In the commencement of the play, one thing that really caught my attention was the description of Ruth. The playwright describes Ruth as a beautiful woman who looks older than her age due to stress and worry. I will admit that in the beginning of the play, I found Ruth to be annoying and I thought that she treated her husband as though he was not capable of achieving his goals; however, as the play continued I grew more fond of Ruth's character. When most people read this play, I am willing to bet that they learn to love Mama and appreciate Beneatha's willingness to stand up for her beliefs and independence, but I became attached to Ruth's sense of compassion. Although she was struggling herself, she always put Mama and Walter first. Walter treats her with disrespect at times, but she always offers herself to him fully. I believe that Ruth is an exemplary woman, and I admire her patience when dealing with such hardships. Often times I think stay-at-home mothers do not receive the gratitude that they should for all of their hard work. If anything, I learned to appreciate Ruth throughout this play, and learned to respect a woman who cares for her family. Yes, I am sort of a feminist.

Theme: Dream Deferred

To me, the main theme of the play is listed in one of the first pages, and lies within a poem: a dream deferred. The entire play is based around the dreams of the characters and how they pursue them, or if they come true. Although at times there dreams seem too distant to grasp, each believes that they are capable of achieving it. Just like in real life, there are obstacles that the characters have to overcome, especially with money struggles, but they never completely eliminate the possibility. For example, Walter tells his son, Travis, that one day he will be able to hand over Travis' future and allow him the possibility to choose any at which he could receive an education. Due to their financial problems at the time, the dream seemed unrealistic and impossible. However, Walter kept persistent and towards the end of the play he realized that he could get through the rough times and keep going. Also, in the last scene of the play, Mama goes over to her plant and grabs it before leaving their apartment for the last time. Throughout the play, she describes this plant as herself. In my opinion, the plant was her dream for her family to grow and prosper with a little care and sunlight. By grabbing the plant and taking it with her at the end, Mama believed that there was still a possibility of her dream coming true.

Realistic Conventions

In my opinion, "A Raisin in the Sun" employs realistic conventions, especially compared to "The Glass Menagerie." For example, the civil rights movement and struggles with racism play a large role in the lives of the Younger family. Although they are proud and believe they are equal, there are times when the Younger family believes the white people are superior to them. In the beginning of the play, Walter expresses his anger towards Ruth when exclaiming that the women of his race do nothing but bring their men down. When making this comment, I inferred that Walter thought black women were inferior to the white women; they possess negative attitudes and do not dream. Another realistic aspect of the play is the relationship between the family members. It is apparent that there is a bit of stubbornness in the characters, especially in Walter and Beneatha; however, they also care about one another and show their affection and appreciation towards one another when times are rough. One last realistic convention of the play is their manufacturing of dreams. Every main character in the play expresses a desire they wish to possess, similar to real life.

Count your Blessings

In the beginning of the play, the Glass Menagerie seemed to have no real purpose or story line; however, the fifth scene displayed some sort of climax. The scene where Laura began to come out of her shell, and talk to Jim the way she desired to, caught my attention the most. In particular, there was a quote that I believed related to my own life. In the fifth scene, Jim says, "That's what you have to remember! And everybody has problems, not just you, but practically everybody has got some problems." (pg 1277) I attended the Christian Awakening Retreat last week, and I discovered that I need to look at my own life sometimes and remember that there are people who are suffering a great deal more than I am. Now, I understand that I should be thankful for the blessings I have in my own life, and I should remember to treat with others with respect because they may have it a lot worse than I do. I understand that Laura is shy and suffers from a disability. However, she could have it a lot worse than a leg brace, and that is what Jim is trying to make apparent to her.

Protagonist/Antagonist

In my opinion, I would say that Amanda is the protagonist in the story. It was difficult to decipher whether or not which role she played; however, I believe that she was looking out for the good of her entire family rather than the good of herself. Amanda seems to only want the best for her son and daughter, which is why she goes out of her way to make sure they are making good decisions and keeping good goals. Although she is EXTREMELY annoying and nagging at times, I think she does have good intentions. Tom, on the other hand, I believe to be the antagonist. I understand his reasoning behind his leaving his family, but it was a selfish decision. He took great care of his family financially, but only really cared about himself and getting out of the house. Amanda and Tom fought all of the time, also making them foil characters. Amanda was trying to be sensible and responsible, while Tom was dreaming and making selfish choices.

Non-realistic vs Realistic

The Glass Menagerie displays both non-realistic and realistic characteristics throughout the entirety of the play. In all five of the scenes, music plays in correspondence with the characters and their actions. For example, the "Glass Menagerie" plays whenever there is a scene demonstrating Laura and Amanda's relationship. Another non-realistic aspect of the play is Tom playing both as a character and a narrator. He simply walks into the scene after he narrates what will be taking place. Finally, the father's photograph on the wall lights up after Tom explains how his father "escaped his coffin without removing a nail. " There are also realistic aspects to the play. For example, Amanda is worried about her children's futures, especially Laura's future. The fights between the family members display realistic qualities of a family in a modern world. Also, the conversation and dialogue between the family members is also realistic; they talk to each other in a sensible manner.