Question

HELPPPPPPPP PLEASEEEEEE

Read the following excerpt from Act I, Scene 1 of Lorraine Hansberry's A Raisin in the Sun:
WALTER Is he out yet?

RUTH What you mean out? He ain't hardly got in there good yet.

WALTER (Wandering in, still more oriented to sleep than to a new day) Well, what was you doing all that yelling for if I can't even get in there yet? (Stopping and thinking) Check coming today?

RUTH They said Saturday and this is just Friday and I hopes to God you ain't going to get up here first thing this morning and start talking to me 'bout no money — 'cause I 'bout don't want to hear it.

WALTER Something the matter with you this morning?

RUTH No — I'm just sleepy as the devil. What kind of eggs you want?

WALTER Not scrambled, (RUTH starts to scramble eggs) Paper come? (RUTH points impatiently to the rolled up Tribune on the table, and he gets it and spreads it out and vaguely reads the front page) Set off another bomb yesterday.

RUTH (Maximum indifference) Did they?

WALTER (Looking up) What's the matter with you?

RUTH Ain't nothing the matter with me. And don't keep asking me that this morning.
Explain how stage directions add to the reader's understanding of the characters in this excerpt. Be sure to use specific details from the text to support your answer

Answer 1

Stage directions can help the reader understand the emotions that the character is trying to convey, just like how actions convey emotions in real life. This is because stage directions are just actions put into a verbal state. Without the stage directions, the reader would have to infer how the person speaking is feeling and what they are doing. For example when Ruth says “did they” with “maximum indifference”, it shows that Ruth has a lack of interest towards the news of a bomb being set off, allowing the reader to better understand the tone and atmosphere of the scene. The stage directions also help us learn about Ruth’s character with the words “points impatiently”. With these stage directions in mind, the reader can understand that Ruth can have a somewhat bitter and monotone personality.

Answer 2

Stage directions are essential for giving the reader of the script an idea of how the characters are positioned onstage, and what each is doing. This highlights the important actions or gestures that communicate the message expressed by a scene. For instance, Ruth pointing impatiently to a rolled up newspaper on the dining table expresses a tense mood in the scene, than if she were to point at it indifferently with a limp hand gesture.