Raffaele Ragione was described as instinctive and original, of late Impressionist style. He was trained at the Academy of Fine Arts in Naples and at the school of Domenico Morelli and Stanislao Lista. Ragione distinguished himself in portraits and genre scenes, proving to be creative, prolific and sensitive to changes in daylight.

In his first works, such as in Bosco di Capodimonte, he came into contact with the Resìna School which gathered in Naples a group of painters who painted from life. He knew how to grasp - en plein air - small scenes of everyday life in the bourgeois environment, which he placed on the canvas with fresh, airy and delicate colors, rendered in small and large spots. He presented himself with works in this style at the annual exhibitions of the promoter society of Naples, from 1873 to 1897. In 1873 he exhibited The improvised car;  in 1874, The tales of the grandmother;  in 1875, Il pane povero; in 1876, The teaching at work;  in 1880, Last hope;  in 1881, The hope of a poor mother.

He was also present at exhibitions of the Promotrice of Genoa, in 1874 and 1875, exhibited in Milan in 1874 and 1895, in Turin in the years 1875 and 1878 and in Rome in 1893.

Moving to Paris in 1902, he took on an even fresher, softer and more spontaneous style, closer to the ways of the Impressionists. He remained in the French capital until 1923, when he returned to Naples.

The Gallery of the Academy of Fine Arts in Naples owns the work by Ragione entitled La Comunicanda.