Comparative Analysis of the Play and a Raisin in the Sun Essay Example
The following research is a precise comparative analysis between the "Play" by Samuel Beckett and "A Raisin in the Sun" by Lorraine Hansberry. The "Play" is a one-act play written by the year 1962 and the year 1963 by Samuel Beckett. The Play mainly consists of three main characters that are a man (M) and two women namely (W1 and W2) that are trapped in the runs with only their heads showing. The play is rather an extraordinary work of some drama that is well played by an actress who has an illuminated mouth with the rest of the stage being completely dark.
The mouth is used to relate to a tale of a woe which is somehow talking with disjointed and fragmented sentences while talking about her past trauma and an empty and painful life. On the other hand, A Ra
...isin in the Sun is a play written by Lorraine Hansberry. The drama consists of four main characters namely Walter, Mama, beneath and Assegai (Neto, Orozimbo & Paolucci 87). The play is a part of a broad movement that portrays the lives of the ordinary working class of the African-Americans. From the drama of a rise in the Sun, the genre of Realism is used to capture the average life making the Drama fit this description.
From the analysis of the Play by Samuel Beckett, it is clear that the drama is written in response to "Play" where it does not only proclaim some absurdity. The statement is used to embody the game where the word contains a lot of information about some conventions of absurdist that can apparently be found in the "Play."
On the other
hand, it is clear that Lorraine Hansberry clearly understands about the dialects of the black community that are largely distinct from the dialects of the other communities (Beckett & Samuel 345). Her characters are seen to speak in the real language of their community. Hansberry's close family are all college educated and all of them only speak a Standard English while at how. Hansberry is seen spending most of her time at the impoverished Southside of their household that are similar to that of the Younger family that is in the Raisin. Mama's speech is an actual full-time speech that is different from that of beneath. In the drama, some differences occur in the expression patterns of Mama and Walter, Ruth, and Bobo.
The Play by Samuel Beckett happens in the theater of Absurd. It expresses some ideas about the existence of humans in a meaningless unreasonable Universe. The Play uses some existential philosophy and also combines it with some drama elements in creating a style of theater plays in presenting the world that cannot be logically explained.
The Absurd comedy is symbolic to a point out of the helplessness and pointless existence in the universe without a fundamental purpose. The Play uses some meaningless plots where the theater of the absurd is typified using some repetitive dialogues and also some dramatic non-sequiturs. The mood in the game can be seen as a dream-like atmosphere that is created by the repetitive conversations. The whole play by Samuel Beckett also demonstrates some fundamental nature of the Absurdist Theater. In evaluating some element of drama in the Play, it is clear that the Play is quite explicit in that
it does not just proclaim the absurdity but rather embodies it.
The Raisin in the Sun most characters uses a language that has non-Standard English. All the non-black characters speak a language that is not merely English and is quite ungrammatical. The blacks speak a language that is dialect and common to all the people of the black communities which appear to be profoundly affected by the population of migrants from the south (Thomas & Aaron 458). The language of the blacks seems to be similar to that of the whites from the South. For instance, the language of the black is where they abuse the verb "to be." In the play, the words are used in circumstances like "Harry be waiting for me all time in the night when I come home." The style of language in this case "be "is used to refer to "all of the time." The blacks also used to omit some main verbs before the main participle referring to an action that is taking place "at that point."
For instance, in the black’s language, "she talking" means something that is entirely different from, "she is talking." In this case, Hansberry must have been aware of all the semantic subtleties of all the black dialect so as to make his points in Raisin. Such an example can be seen when Walter says, "I can't be being' late to work on the account of him fooling around in there." Ruth also says to Walter that, "Walter, don't be dragging me into it." The blacks use the language since they lack education.
The Play by Samuel Beckett is symbolic as seen by the disjointed sentences
of a woe while talking about the past traumas and a painful life. Beckett says that the character is quite based in a part of a woman who is known in Ireland. The old cronies appear to be without some particular purpose who mostly live in a difficult and painful life (Beckett & Samuel 76).
The whole play evokes a more sensitive response that is a more intelligent one especially when the story told by mouth’s hard to follow in a straightforward sense of narrative. Symbolism in the Raisin in the Sun is used in many instances. For example, the Sunlight is used to show how the old apartment has so little of it. In Act two, scene one, Ruth asks of "whether the new house is going to have a lot of sunlight." Sunlight is used to symbolize hope and life. All human life in the play depends on energy and warmth from the sun. The cockroaches, the rats, and the other lovely creatures, on the other hand, are used to symbolize the reinforcement of a younger family that is in an undesirable condition.
The three characters in the Play by Samuel Beckett are used to represent their unique versions of a love triangle that once may have occurred between them. It is clear that in the play most of the characters might have been tortured by the other, or some are even abused by their situations. The Spotlight is used as imagery to act as a "unique Inquisitor" that compels each of the characters to speak when it shines towards them and also stops when it goes (Beckett & Samuel 456).
As the assault continues to
happen, the characters are seen to become madder through the increase of light and also makes it desperate to make it stop. The play continues to repeat itself by providing the audience with some sense that all these characters have always been saying the same words for eternity. The characters continue to do so until when the light decides that they can stop.
Beckett also demonstrates a particular "style of living that is theatrically communicable. The form is used to represent a state of the mind of the characters. The character also talks about how the love triangle affected them in their life. The language in the whole act appears to be colorful, despite the fact that it is affected with some bitterness and jealousy.
On the other hand, In the Raisin in the Sun, a lot of criticism is seen between the characters. Assegai, for instance, criticizes beneath where he does s out of a desire to help her. He appears to criticize her straightened hair that resembles the Caucasian hair. He persuades her to cut him hair and keep it more natural in an African look. He also criticizes her independent views and does so only to give her new energy and strength. Beneath on the other hand is seen to pride herself on being independent. Assegai also criticizes her for being too independent by not wishing to marry and also too dependent for wanting to leave America. Assegai wants that beneath can be quieter and even less ambitious and obviously outrageous to her.
She finally realizes her dependence and gains a new perspective on her dream which makes her get new energy to attain in
her way. The realization helps her to get closer to Walter. All the following study is a clear comparative analysis of the two dramas of the Play by Samuel Beckett and A Raisin In the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry.
References
- Beckett, Samuel. Eleutheria: A Play. OR Books, 2014.
- Neto, Orozimbo Paolucci. "African-american manhood: obstacles, reactions and reconciliation in A raisin in the sun, Dutchman and Blues for Mister Charlie." (2013).
- Thomas, Aaron C. "Watching A Raisin in the Sun and Seeing Red." Modern Drama 58.4 (2015): 461-481.
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