Misunderstood Sons and Their Dreams in a Raisin in the Sun and the Glass Menagerie

Misunderstood Sons and Their Dreams in A Raisin in  the Sun and The Glass Menagerie

On the surface, Tennessee William’s The Glass Menagerie and Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun do not appear to have all that much in common. The Glass Menagerie tells the story of the Wingfield family: a lower class, white family of three living in St. Louis in the 1930’s. The Youngers from A Raisin in the Sun on the other hand, are a large working-class African-American family living in Chicago in the 1950’s. The most obvious difference between these two families is race. And while race and discrimination do play a crucial role in A Raisin in the Sun, at its core, this play examines the trials and tribulations of family. In this sense, the Younger family is almost identical to the Wingfield family. In both plays, the families struggle to mend their broken relationships and achieve their dreams. Both families are saddled with economic difficulties, absent fathers, and conflict within their tiny and cramped apartments. Ultimately, both plays explore the bonds, relationships, and dynamics that tie family together. While race is clearly a crucial and important difference between these works, what is truly impressive about Hansberry’s work is that any audience, regardless of skin- color can relate to the familial struggles and conflicts. In the words of theater critic Richard A. Duprey: “Raisin is full of human insights that transcend any racial ‘concerns.’” Fellow critic C.W.E. Bigsby similarly praises Hansberry’s “compassion and her understanding of the need to ‘transcend’ history.” (Brown 238). The similarities between The Glass Menagerie and A Raisin in the Sun prove that while we may all have different skin colors, the universality of family is a theme that transcends race. And the differences between the Wingfield and Younger families prove that strength, determination, and resilience cannot be dictated by race.

The Glass Menagerie and A Raisin in the Sun examine the personal growth and moral development of Tom Wingfield and Walter Younger. Both men are miserable with their current jobs and have a fondness for alcohol. Tom wants to quit his boring, but steady job  to be a writer. And Walter, who is the personal chauffer for a wealthy white man, wishes to open a liquor store with his friends. Their families consider these dreams selfish. The Wingfields depend on the money Tom earns to pay their bills. And Walter wants to use all of the life-insurance money for his store rather than what would best benefit the whole family. The plays center around these identity crises.

            At the start of each play, the young men are in very similar circumstances. They are expected to support their families, but neither Tom nor Walter is particularly suited for this role, and each has disappointed his family. Tom constantly complains about his job, picks fights with his mother, and runs off to the “movies because [he] like[s] adventure.” (33) Walter ignores his wife and son just like he ignores his responsibilities. He comes home drunk every day and complains, instead of taking action.