Importance of Dreams Deferred in A Raisin in the Sun A dream is a hope, a wish and an aspiration. Young people dream about what they want to do when they grow up. Parents have dreams for their children's future. Not all of these dreams come true at the desired time: these dreams are postponed or "postponed". A dream deferred is put “on the back burner of life” (Jemie 219), matures to its full potential, and waits when you are “ready to pursue it” (Jemie 219). It is assumed that the deferred event, even if later than hoped, will eventually come true. Dreams deferred are a significant component of "A Raisin in the Sun"; the word "dream" is used a total of fourteen times throughout the play. Mother, from “A Raisin in the Sun,” experienced a “dream deferred” (Hughes). Mom's dreams were about her children's happiness and a new home. She and her husband Big Walter put everything they had into getting that house "with a little backyard" (Hansberry). When she receives her insurance payout after her husband's death and invests in a house in Clybourne Park, she is ecstatic. The dream has been postponed many times. She and Big Walter simply didn't have the money to buy a house and move out of the apartment. "I'm... halfway through the paper... it will probably come true. Works Cited: Hansberry, Lorraine. A Raisin in the Sun. New York: Signet, 1988. Hughes, Langston. "Dream Deferred." Perrine Literature: Structure , sound and sense. Ed. Thomas R. Arp. Worth: HBJ, 1998. Jemie, Onwuchekwa. "Langston Hughes." Ed. Daniel G. Marowski. 219-220. King, Martin Luther, Jr. "A Testament of Hope: The Essential Writings and Speeches of Martin Luther King, Jr., ed. James M. Washington. San Francisco: Harper, 1986. Wintz, Gary D. "Langston Hughes." CLC. vol. 10. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale, 1979. 279-280.