Evaluations of – “A Dream Deferred” by Langston Hughes

Reading Questions Answer the questions below on a separate document. Just copy and paste them into your own! 1. Quickly write down what you think a raisin in the sun looks like. How did it get there? What happens to it in the heat? Why? 2. What clues does this image give you about what the play might read about? Why would Hansberry title her play this way? 3. What happens to a dream deferred? Answer the question according to your own life experience. 4. Read this poem aloud: “A Dream Deferred” by Langston Hughes What happens to a dream deferred? Does it dry up like a raisin in the sun? Or fester like a sore– And then run? Does it stink like rotten meat? Or crust and sugar over– like a syrupy sweet? Maybe it just sags like a heavy load. Or does it explode? According to Hughes, what happens to a dream deferred? There are six possibilities. Outline each one in your answer. 5. How do you think these two texts relate (Hughes’ poem and Hansberry’s play)? Why would Hansberry pair her play with this poem? What does this pairing suggest about her? About the text? What predictions about the play can you make based on what Hughes describes in his poem? Answer these questions in an organized paragraph. 6. List 3-5 of your own dreams. Have any of those dreams come true? Have any been deferred? Describe your experience with a dream that was deferred. Why was it deferred? What would need to happen to make it come true? Was it deferred permanently or temporarily? Will it do any of the things Langston Hughes described in his poem? If you can’t think of one of your own, pick a parent or adult you know that may have had one of his or her dreams deferred.