1. Background information for A Raisin in the Sun

2. The Harlem Renaissance
The Harlem Renaissance was a literary, artistic, and intellectual movement that helped spark a new black cultural identity.
In 1926, Alain Locke, a critic and teacher, declared that through art, “Negro life is seizing its first chances for group expression and self determination

3. Langston Hughes ( )
Known as one of the most prolific and successful African American writers in the country.
In his poetry, he expressed pride for his heritage and voiced his displeasure with the oppression he witnessed.
He was born in Missouri and lived in many places throughout his life including: Harlem, Europe, and African; however, he said he felt most welcome in Harlem because it was there that he felt most welcomed and nourished as an artist. He recognized Harlem as a source of inspiration for black artists.

4. What imagery in being presented in this poem
What imagery in being presented in this poem? What figurative language is being used?

5. Lorraine Hansberry
Lorraine Hansberry was born on May 19, 1930, in Chicago, Illinois. She wrote A Raisin in the Sun, a play about a struggling black family, which opened on Broadway to great success. Hansberry was the first black playwright and the youngest American to win a New York Critics’ Circle award. Throughout her life she was heavily involved in civil rights. She died at 34 of pancreatic cancer.