In Raisin in the Sun, Lorraine Hansberry does not reject integration or the economic and moral promise of the American dream; rather, she remains loyal to
this dream while looking, realistically, at its incomplete realization. Once we recognize this dual vision, we can accept the play’s ironic nuances as deliberate social commentaries by Hansberry rather than as the “unintentional” irony that Bigsby attributes to the work. Indeed, a curiously persistent refusal to credit Hansberry with a capacity for intentional irony has led some critics to interpret the play’s thematic conflicts as mere confusion, contradiction, or eclecticism. Isaacs, for example, cannot easily reconcile Hansberry’s intense concern for her race with her ideal of human reconciliation. But the play’s complex view of Black self-esteem and human solidarity as compatible is no more “contradictory” than Du Bois’ famous, well-considered ideal of ethnic self-awareness coexisting with human unity, or Fanon’s emphasis on an ideal internationalism that also accommodates national identities and roles.
It can be inferred from the passage that the author believes which of the following about Hansberry’s use of irony in Raisin in the Sun?
- It reflects Hansberry’s reservations about the extent to which the American dream has been realized.
- It is justified by Hansberry’s loyalty to a favorable depiction of American life.
- It shows in the play’s thematic conflicts.
An important thing to keep in mind about the Reading Comprehension section of the GRE as we use PowerPrep online to study is that it is just that—reading comprehension. In other words, as difficult as it may seem, and it can be pretty tricky, the test makers will always give us all the information we need in the passage to answer the question. This is especially important to keep in mind when the question asks us about something that can be “inferred” from the passage, like question 9 of the second Verbal section on practice test 1.
Questions that ask us what can be “inferred” from the passage can be tricky because the answers will not necessarily be spelled out for us in the passage. However, we know that any correct answers should be based on the passage. In other words, although the answers may not appear exactly in the passage, any correct answers should be logical conclusions based on the information we’re given in the passage.
In this case, we are asked about the author’s views on Hansberry’s use of irony, which is a central idea of the passage. Therefore, we’ll want to use keywords in our answer choices to help us navigate through the passage. Also, this is a select-all-that-apply question, so we’ll need to consider each answer individually in order to determine if it is something that can be deduced from the passage. If we haven’t already, we should quickly skim the passage to get an idea of what it talks about so that we’re better equipped to figure out what information may have been implied.
After we read this passage, we might reflect on a couple of big ideas. First, the author presented her view, that the play reflects “ironic nuances” by remaining “loyal to [the American dream] while looking, realistically, at its incomplete realization.” However, she tells us that many critics fail to recognize Hansberry’s “capacity for intentional irony” and therefore do not agree with the author’s interpretation of the work, instead arguing that its central ideas are “confusion, contradiction, or eclecticism.” After giving us an example, the author refutes this idea by providing other examples of similarly complex views from Du Bois and Fanon.
Alright, so the author believes Hansberry’s use of irony was intentional and is often misunderstood by critics. Let’s see if there are answers that reflect these ideas or other things that might be inferred from this passage.
- It reflects Hansberry’s reservations about the extent to which the American dream has been realized.
Hmm. The beginning of the passage is where the “American dream” was mentioned, so if we aren’t sure about this answer, we should look in the first couple of sentences. Indeed, we’re told in the first sentence that Hansberry is “loyal” to and does not “reject” the “economic and moral promise of the American dream” but that she does look “realistically at its incomplete realization.” The very next sentence labels this as “dual vision” that allows us to “accept the play’s ironic nuances,” so it does seem as though Hansberry’s ability to remain true to the American dream while expressing “reservation” about the extent to which African Americans have been able to live the American dream is one irony of the play. We can say, then, that answer A is true, so we should select this answer.
- It is justified by Hansberry’s loyalty to a favorable depiction of American life.
Hmm. We know from searching for our last answer that Hansberry remains true to the American dream, but doesn’t necessarily depict a “favorable” version of it, instead showing how it hasn’t been completely realized. Also, the author does not make the point that Hansberry’s use of irony needs justification; her main point is that this irony does exist and is intentional. B uses keywords from the passage, but at the end of the day is not supported, so we should NOT select this answer.
- It shows in the play’s thematic conflicts.
If we aren’t sure about this answer, we should skim for the phrase “thematic conflicts.” Ahh. In the third sentence we’re told that failure to account for this deliberate irony has led critics to misinterpret the “thematic conflicts” of the work. Well, if our understanding of these thematic conflicts relies on our recognition of irony, then it seems logical that irony must be present in the play’s thematic conflicts. C is true based on the passage, so we should select this answer.
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