Lorraine Hansberry’s story is heavily steeped in racism. It does well to portray the social features of strong segregation and racial discrimination that prevailed during the 1950s in the United States, a time when the story’s younger family lived in Chicago’s South Side ghetto, as well as the struggles of the African-Americans to resist against the unfair treatment being meted out to them. Racial discrimination leads to the city being carved into two distinct parts – the first housing whites only, and the other housing blacks. Not only did blacks occupy a marginalized sector of society, but even within that margin, black women had to combat racial and gender prejudice. A majority of blacks did not accept the idea of assimilating into the dominant white culture because by doing so they would fit into white perceptions about their behavior and actions and thereby would be demeaning themselves. Blacks were searching for separate self-identities based on a celebration of their culture and heritage. They wanted to be treated as equally (like whites) contributing members of society, in pursuit of the American Dream (in those days it was to be a happy family that owned a house and a car).
Characters of the story
Claudia McNeil is commendable as Lena’s (‘Mama”) Younger. She constantly dreams about her family and herself being considered equal to whites in society. She does not allow racism to come in the way of her dream of creating a new life and future for her family that involves moving into a dominantly white neighborhood.
Sidney Poitier’s phenomenal role as Walter Younger captures the central meaning of an African American’s intense desire for the American Dream. The power of his dream is to be financially well-off, educate his son Travis (Stephen Perry), and provide for his future. His endless preoccupation with finding quick riches and dominating his household makes him engage in arguments with his mother, wife, and sister; he turns wayward by resorting to constantly drinking.
Diana Sands as Beneatha (“Bennie”) attends college and is better educated than anyone else in the family. However, she is hampered by her dependence on the insurance amount to pay for her education: an effective stereotype of a black woman in those days who was racially discriminated by white society as well as by her own culture as not being worthy of higher education and its related status in life.
Ruby Dee as Ruth Younger portrays a pragmatic pessimist continually battling poverty and household problems. She dreams about getting away from their present slovenly locality, moving into a respectable house, and attaining a status equal to whites in society.
Joseph Asagai (Ivan Dixon) is a forceful Nigerian character who takes fierce pride in his African heritage. George Murchison (Louis Gossett Jr.) believes the only way to overcome racist deficiencies, riches, and admiration of others is by assimilating into white society. John Fiedler as Karl Lindner portrays the typical “white Aryan”, arrogantly secure in the power of his race and its belief that blacks are not fit to live in the same neighborhood as them. An opposition successfully portrayed in the story is white/black opposition representing Karl Lindner and other white racist Americans against the Younger family representing African Americans seeking a just and fair foothold in society.
The final freedom
The play “A Raisin in the Sun” officially opened in 1959, much before the black liberation movement revolutionized the lifestyle of African Americans in the United States. The movement, famously highlighted by Martin Luther’s speech “I Have a Dream” on August 28, 1963, signaled the start of a successful struggle that was responsible for elevating the status of African Americans in the United States in a series of gradual developments ultimately culminating into total freedom and total recognition as equal contributors to American society as their white counterparts. Although Lorraine Hansberry did not live to see the final freedom achieved by African Americans (she died an untimely death in 1965 at the age of thirty-four), she would surely have greatly gladdened to witness the “I Have a Dream” speech and realize that racial discrimination against African Americans would soon be an unhappy memory of the past.
References
Cocola, Jim & Douthat, Ross. “SparkNote on ‘A Raisin in the Sun’”. 2007. Web.
Petrie, Daniel. “A Raisin in the Sun” (video). 1961. Web.
A Raisin in the Sun depicts the life of an African-American family of Youngers living in Southern Chicago during 1950s. The play opens with Youngers preparing to receive $ 10,000 for insurance, from Mr. Younger’s life insurance policy. As a result, all adult members of the family have budgeted for the money with each individual having varying opinions on how to spend the cash. Mama, the head of the family plans to buy a house and fulfill her lifetime dream which she shared with her late husband (Morrin and Hansberry 13).
Walter Lee, Mama’s son is contemplating on investing his share in a liquor store in order to get finances that would salvage the family’s financial status. On the other hand, Walter’s wife shares her vision with Mama and hopes that their son Trivis will find the world a better place to live. Lastly, Beneatha gives her medical school tuition first priority as she tries to figure out her identity by reflecting on their history and Africa.
This competition leads to a clash of dreams as more challenges emerge as the family later moves to Clybourne Park, fulfilling their shared dream. They remain optimistic and united as they hope for a better life in future (Sparknotes 101 literature 703).
The play illustratesa number of themes which the writer illustrates using different events and reactions as portrayed by Mama and her family. All the family members have aspirations and dreams which are universal and shared among other people from different backgrounds (Hansberry 25).
Walter’s understanding of this American dream marks the center of the conflict in the play. Hegets addicted to the middle-class philosophy of materialism and believes in rising to become a better person through hard work and determination. Hansberry illustrates Walter’s perception towards Charlie’s business that earns him $100,000 annually. He ignores everyone’s opinion towards his intentions of running a liquor storewhich he adopts with desperation as means to realize his dream.
The same is demonstrated as Walter considers accepting an offer from Mr. Lindner without visualizing the implication of this business deal. He sees it as the only way to recover his lost money. Walter’s wrong interpretation of the American dream is challenged as he carries illegal transactions before his son. He revises this understanding after finding it hard to deal with Mr. Lindner (Sparknotes 101 literature 703).
Additionally, Hansberry develops female gender identity throughout the play by representing three generations of women. Lena assumes the headship of the family in her early thirties after the death of her husband, Walter Senior. Having been brought up in the South during dangerous times of lynching, she relocates to the Northern part with the hope of finding peace and a better life. Despite the fact that Lena is ahead of time, her dreams remain anchored on the well being of her family rather than selfish interests.
According to Scholar Claudia, Lena’s disregard to herself is fashioned by gender conditioning which affirms that the needs of a woman ought to be connected to the family alone (Washington 113). She puts up with her husband’s immoral behavior under poor conditions and struggles to support him. This clearly portrays a conflict between men and women regarding their positions in the society. Women are not considered for material wealth as they are expected to better the life of their families.
Unlike Lena, Ruth engages her husband in arguments although she goes ahead to please him by commenting positively about the liquor business to Lena. She also pleads with her sister-in-law, Beneatha not to provoke her brother about the kind of businesses he is involved in.
She ends up doing all kinds of jobs to enable the family to move to a better house. On the other hand, Beneatha is a no-nonsense feminist college student who is against the unfair treatment and expectations of the society from women (Hansberry 27). She does not see the reason why women are considered less human yet they are expected to take care of their households.
She constantly rejects and criticizes the ideas of her brother who makes misinformed decisions based on mediocre interpretation of the American dream. She challenges Walter’s male chauvinism and rejects men like George Murchison who have no recognition and single respect for women in the society (Washington 111). The writer clearly exemplifies how the perception of women towards their identity in the society has tremendously changed.
In addressing gender imbalance in the society, Hansberry defines a man using Walter whose course of action is mainly dictated by the fact that he is a man (Washington 111). In his capacity as a son, husband and father, Walter demonstrates men’s view over gender balance and discrimination. He pretends to love his son so much and wants to appear innocent and honorable in hiseyes.
He understands the financial constraints of the family yet he manages to give a dollar to his son every time he requests for fifty cents (Morrin and Hansberry 12).
Walter chooses the liquor business to make personal wealth and to provide for his family. He wants to make his wife happy and take his son to a prestigious college of his choice. He provides for his mother by stepping in his father’s shoes during her old age. He decides to degrade in his futile efforts to achieve his goals.
The play generally describes several themes which revolve around the life of African-Americans in 1950s. Through gender issues, American Dream and poverty, Hansberry discusses family life in a contextual manner that permits imagination of the social set up of Youngers.
Works Cited
Hansberry, Lorraine. A raisin in the sun. New York: Vintage Books, 1994. Print.
Morrin, Maxine, and Lorraine Hansberry. A Raisin in the Sun. Piscataway, N.J: Research & Education Association, 1994. Print.
Literary works reflect people’s longings and focus on particular facets of the human live. Thus, Morales and Hansberry tell a story of the life of minority groups who have to struggle with numerous issues. Importantly, each genre has its characteristic features which largely determine the development of characters.
It is possible to trace this difference while considering the characters of Walter and Ramon. These two characters have a lot in common, but they also differ in a number of ways. At that, the development of these characters is also different.
Thus, it is necessary to note that the two characters are males who are breadwinners and have to provide for their women. Ramon has a young pregnant wife, Walter lives with his wife and his son, his mother and sister. The two men are representatives of minority groups who have severe financial constraints.
It is clear that the two men wish to be wealthier. However, they are hard workers and hardly have an opportunity to become richer in the nearest future. These financial problems and overall dissatisfaction with their life (as well as status) makes them abusive. The two men similarly try to assert themselves at the expense of their women.
However, this is where similarities end as it is obvious that the two characters are very different in many ways.
One of the most obvious differences is that Walter abuses his wife psychologically while Ramon often physically abuses his wife even though she is pregnant with his child. Ramon would beat his wife and poor woman “was scared he would hurt the little baby” (Morales 561).
Walter is very rude and mean all the time he accuses his wife of being unsupportive, “moaning and groaning” even though she tries her best to take care of him and their family (Hansberry 494).
Nonetheless, he never beats her like Roman does with his wife. Another important difference is that the two men have different aspirations. Thus, Walter wants to become rich and more powerful.
He is tired of living in the minority neighbourhood and he is ready to take risks to earn a lot of money and to become a part of the majority group. Whereas, Ramon’s aspirations are not vivid but it is clear from the text that he is focused on his job and his household.
The two characters’ attitude towards their background is also different as Ramon is proud of being Hispanic and he speaks Spanish with his wife when he pleads her to stay, “Si te vas me mato. Te lo juro” (Morales 562).
However, Walter is willing to forget about his background and wants to enter the white middle class or even upper-middle class. He thinks he is “a giant – surrounded by ants” (Hansberry 530). He does not want to associate himself with the people living in his neighbourhood.
At this point it is important to add that the development of the two characters is also different due to the genres chosen. In the play, the author reveals Walter’s aspirations and fears through his interactions with other characters. Walter appears to be a well-developed character whose major features of character are on the surface.
However, the character of Ramon is not that developed as it is hard (or even impossible) to reveal major features within a short story. The reader is not sure about Ramon’s aspirations as he also could strive to get rich and he could also be involved in some financial operations.
In conclusion, it is possible to state that Walter and Ramon are two representatives of minority groups who have a lot in common, though differ considerably. One of the most obvious differences is their attitude towards their background.
Other differences are less explicit due to different of the literary works as the short story is unable to reflect all the facets of a character while the play has all tools to do it effectively.
Works Cited
Hansberry, Lorraine. A Raisin in the Sun. n.d. Web.
Walter Lee Younger is the protagonist in Lorraine Hansberry’s play A Raisin in the Sun. The character is complex and dynamic, as exemplified by the changes that occur in his overviews and decisions. Walter’s initial traits highlight his desire to strive financially, yet the methods that he uses to achieve his goals and the goals themselves do not put him in a good light. On the other hand, the progression evident during the events of the play give Walter a new perspective on himself as an individual, his background, and his interaction with the world. Thus, the character’s journey is that of a person who finds his honor, pride, and fulfillment by embracing his ethnicity and realizing his worth.
An Overview of Walter
Walter Lee Younger is an African American man whose dream is acquiring wealth and fulfilling the material objectives that he set for himself. Money is the primary driving factor for the character, as well as the desire to fit it and dismiss his heritage as he views it in a negative light. The story that best exemplifies the traits of the character at the beginning of the play is the opportunity to sell the house. The house recently acquired by Walter’s mother is in a white neighborhood, a decision facilitated by the attractive price. However, the protagonist receives the offer to sell it since the neighbors are interested in keeping the community entirely white, and the Younger family would ruin the plan. Walter wants to agree to the deal despite the fact that it implies he agrees to exchange his pride and heritage for money (Hansberry 143). The story shows Walter to be unappreciative or even dismissive of his ethical background, believing that a financial gain is more important than defending the right to be considered equal to white people.
Walter’s Journey
The vents in the play illustrate a change in the entire Younger family, and Walter is one of the characters who acquired traits that he never had before. The situation with the house, which was mentioned earlier, has ended with Walter deciding not to sell the house (Hansberry 147). Moreover, Walter highlighted that the money used to buy it was inherited from his father, who earned every brick. By doing so, Walter has honored not only his family but also himself. It is clear that money is a big motivator that has made Walter doubtful of the need to be proud of his background. However, he changed when he decided that his worth was more important than the offer. As a result, it is inevitable that Walter has changed on multiple levels and has acquired something he has never had before. While he did not fulfill his financial goals, he achieved self-fulfillment through pride and honor for his family, heritage, and history.
Conclusion
It is evident that Walter Lee Younger is a different character at the end of the play compared to the beginning. Initially, Walter’s only values were his financial goals since his whole existence was focused on escaping poverty and making a name for himself. Furthermore, the aim was stronger than Walter’s pride and heritage. However, by the end of the play, the protagonist finds his worth and understands the value of himself as a human being. The character’s development is evident from how he views himself and the behavioral changes that occur when a sense of worth is acquired.
Work Cited
Hansberry, Lorraine. A Raisin in the Sun. Vintage Books, 1959.
A Raisin in the Sun is a play by Lorraine Hansberry that debuted on Broadway in 1959 and became a symbol of struggle. The story weaves together the fate of a black family on Chicago’s South Side, where they try with all their might to make their way to the top. The story combines topical issues of discrimination and racism, which destroy society’s civilizing order. Hansberry’s play was voted best in 1959, and New York playwrights reviewed it favorably. The nascent equality in 1950 was unstable, and Hansberry’s sensitive story reveals the plight of black people through the complex characters of single people.
Overview
Walter Lee Younger’s black family grapples with how to dispose of a large sum of insurance money received after Walter’s father’s death. He dreams of opening his own business, his sister dreams of finishing her university studies, and his mother will buying a lovely house. The play’s central theme is how to overcome his ambition and the rejection by white Americans of their desire to live without regard to race (Hartmann). Hansberry draws attention to the already tricky lot of a black woman, Beneatha, Walter’s sister, who dreams of going to university.
Beneatha: New Way to Be a Woman
Education has always been an indicator of high intelligence and wealth and showed others that the person in front of them was no ordinary person. In the immediate aftermath of the 1957 protests, Hansberry’s play was an extension of a protesting America that did not want to conform to people because of their skin color. There were few African Americans among college graduates – only 3% had a bachelor’s degree, compared to 9% of whites (Table 302.20). The civil protests brought many innovations, and Hansberry struggled to realize this chance for a dream for Beneatha.
Beneatha is a strong heroine and the most educated in her family, making her seem a little arrogant. She expresses her views boldly because she does not deny her origins and believes this makes her who she is. As she develops, Beneatha encounters Asagai, who teaches her to accept her roots (Hansberry 56). She explores her identity and gradually agrees with the value of her origin. She later uses it to prove her value as an individual to her family. Beneatha’s mood can be fickle, and sometimes her hobbies are somewhat crazy. She takes on a new identity-an independent woman (Hansberry 89). Her strength lies in recognizing the conditions of life around her and accepting a reality where she can change for the better. Her selfishness is a good trait, even though she seems hysterical and foolish at first.
There are many values for Beneatha that make her atypical of African American society. She becomes more educated and well-read and gradually becomes part of something bigger. She wants to become a doctor and help people, genuinely believing that skin color is not a barrier (Hartmann). She reasons about civil rights and often argues with her mother to prove her independence. Beneatha can be called a feminist because she recognizes herself as an African woman and fights for her life from this social position.
The young African woman’s relationship with men is a sign of a small protest against reality. At the beginning of the play, she is attracted to rich George, who insists on giving up her African ancestry and realizing herself as an American (Hansberry 131). Gradually, however, Asagai changes her understanding of reality, and Beneatha is not shy about her ties to Africa. She argues with George, trying to prove the necessity of acknowledging her origins, but he does not consider her opinion significant. As a result, the educated and intelligent Beneatha chooses the sincere Asagai, with whom she is not shy about leaving her hair curled and dancing to African music.
Education for Black People Now
Reports show that the percentage of black students attending U.S. colleges and universities is slightly higher than the percentage of the black U.S. population. Decades of segregation and biased admissions policies have resulted in only 26% of black Americans holding a bachelor’s degree or higher in 2020, compared with 40% of white Americans (Table 302.20). People keep fighting for racial equality: holding institutions-educational, government, and social welfare accountable when they don’t deliver on their promises (Horowitz). Hansberry’s play is valuable for understanding the historical condition of black Americans. It explains why it should not be forgotten and why people should continue to fight for the rights.
Outcomes
Thus, Beneatha is a strong heroine who is not ashamed of her background and tries her best to move forward. She invests in her education and tries to help people because she believes race is not essential to support. Together with Asagai, she stops being ashamed of her background and actively promotes the national idea of Africa. Thus, Hansberry’s play is important in understanding why educational inequality continues to exist.
Works Cited
Hansberry, Lorraine. A Raisin in the Sun. First Vintage Book Edition, 1994.
Literary works that describe relationships between the representatives of dissimilar ethnic or racial groups often raise the issue of prejudice on the basis of origin. At the same time, the way that explicit or implicit biases impact the balance of power in society is also emphasized. A Raisin in the Sun, the globally recognized play by one of the most prominent African-American playwrights, Lorraine Hansberry, is not an exception. Focusing on the life of a Black American family, the author discusses the problems of race-based prejudice, segregation, historical memory, and the role of generational gaps in racial minorities’ attitudes to injustice.
In her play, Lorraine Hansberry places the key characters’ race and the resulting differences from the white majority in the context of everyday life and opportunities. Belonging to the middle class, the members of the Younger family have some money, but their most desired wishes are incompatible with their current financial position (James and Davidson 64). However, at the very beginning of the play, they are waiting to get ten thousand dollars, a life insurance payment, after the death of the father (James and Davidson 64). This money fills the family with hope, and the characters start thinking about their boldest dreams as if there were no race-related barriers to success in the mid-twentieth century (James and Davidson 64). The family members see a large sum of money as one of the best ways to pursue their personal goals. However, racial segregation still exists in different forms and places some de facto limitations on the family’s ability to exercise their rights.
Hansberry manages to demonstrate the problems of race-based prejudice without negative stereotypes. Unlike many literary works of the time, A Raisin in the Sun was written by a representative of a racial minority. Therefore, it was not aimed at using a set of offensive stereotypes in order to amuse the racial majority (James and Davidson 64). The questions of race and biases related to interracial differences are not just among the key themes in work – they are literally at the heart of the plot. Interestingly, different critics, for instance, Harris, and Anderson, are convinced that A Raisin in the Sun exceeds the scope of stereotypical views of black womanhood by introducing second to none characters (Murray 283). As an example, Lena Younger referred to as Mama, is the embodiment of different archetypes of black women simultaneously (Murray 283). Despite the presence of recognizable traits and behaviors, literature scholars define her as an accurate prototype for what is considered to be stereotypical today (Murray 283). Therefore, the need to discuss race-specific problems does not prevent the playwright from creating authentic characters.
Trying to shed light on the roots of segregation and prejudice, Hansberry introduces characters who have a life-long experience of racism and even face the long-run effects of slavery. According to the analysis conducted by James and Davidson, Hansberry makes Mama a prominent female character by referring to her strength “that she acquired through years of struggle” (65). Thus, since she acknowledges the underrepresentation of Black families in American theater, the author contributes to diversity in the art without being disrespectful to the experiences of people who have been oppressed and underrated for many years.
A large portion of the new matriarch’s suffering in the past is strictly interconnected with the imbalance of wealth and power in the American South. It includes, for instance, the family history of slavery that Mama will never forget and the woman’s experience of being unwelcome in some spaces (James and Davidson 66). At the same time, particular references to the family’s past related to racism are interspersed with the discussion of universal problems, such as the need to cope with failures and losses (James and Davidson 65). Based on that, the playwright manages to balance between turning the spotlight on the unique cultural experiences of enslaved people’s descendants and showing the members of the family as common people with ordinary problems.
Prejudiced attitudes to people on the basis of their race are thoroughly illustrated in the play due to the family’s decision to buy a house in a white neighborhood. For each family member, their future place of residence symbolizes different things associated with happiness. However, the representative of the local White community, Mr. Lindner, meets the family and tries to dissuade them from fulfilling their plans (Orem 195). Although he tries to look nice, his real attitudes toward racial minorities become evident when he claims that racial segregation in housing makes African Americans safer and happier (Orem 195). Judging from his words, the presence of pre-destined limitations that are indissolubly tied to racial origin does not cause harm to minority groups and is aimed at protecting their safety and encouraging cohesion. As a culminating point of his racist speech, the man offers the family a large sum of money in exchange for not buying the house (Murray 289; Orem 195). This part of the play leaves no room for the illusion of equality and justice and encourages the family to make a difficult decision.
Apart from the characters’ need to cope with limitations imposed on them just because of their skin color, the play touches upon minority people’s attitudes to race-based discrimination. This problem is shown with reference to the conflict between generations and younger people’s attitudes to the history of oppression. When one of Mama’s children is about to accept the proposal of the White community, she becomes furious (Murray 289). In this scene, it becomes clear that some of her younger relatives do not understand the broad implications of such decisions and their long-term consequences for the self-consciousness of the African-American population. More than that, modern researchers note that Mama symbolizes the memory of the previous generations and an “undying spirit” of pride and courage (Murray 289). Her children see the offer as a source of new opportunities for their family and are not fully aware of its ideological underpinnings and further contributions to segregation. Therefore, in addition to the issue of racism, the playwright raises the problem of the minority’s sense of dignity and willingness to come to terms with their oppressors.
To sum it up, although it is a fictional story, A Raisin in the Sun presents an important source helping to study the problems of racism and race. Its first advantage in this regard is that the play introduces a range of non-stereotypical African-American characters with their strengths and weaknesses, thus contributing to diversity and minority representation in art. The literary work attracts attention to numerous aspects of racism, including segregation in housing and the outcomes of slavery and other forms of legalized oppression. At the same time, it adds to the discussion of race by highlighting generational differences in people’s perceptions of prejudice.
Works Cited
James, Jeena, and Manjula L. Davidson. “Patriarchal Tones in Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun and The Sign in Sidney Brustein’s Window.” International Journal of English Language, Literature in Humanities, vol. 7, no. 3, 2019, pp. 62-72.
Murray, William. “The Roof of a Southern Home: A Reimagined and Usable South in Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun.” The Mississippi Quarterly, vol. 68, no. 1-2, 2015, pp. 277-294.
Orem, Sarah. “Signifyin(g) When Vexed: Black Feminist Revision, Anger, and A Raisin in the Sun.” Modern Drama, vol. 60, no. 2, 2017, pp. 189-211.
The play A Raisin in the Sun was written in 1959 by an African-American writer, Lorrain Hansberry. The great success was that it became the first play written by an African-American woman and staged on Broadway. A Raisin in the Sun takes place in the Chicago slums and revolves around what is to be done with a ten-thousand dollar life insurance check belonging to the Younger family. Hansberry unveils life grievances of a black family using symbols of shabby apartments and “Eat Your Eggs”, the theme of hunger, loosing hopes and dreams. Thesis Unique symbols help Hansberry to unveil the themes of loosing hopes and hunger, and set the tone of the play.
Using symbols of shabby furnishings, a plant and money, Hansberry sets the tone of the play and unveils life grievances faced by the main characters. The furnishings symbolize the shabbiness, drabness, and desperation of the ghetto. The furnishings, which are described as “tired” from having had to sustain the living of too many people for too many years, suggest the weariness of the inhabitants of this Southside of Chicago apartment where roaches and rodents share the family’s living space. The furnishings suggest two things: the struggle and deferred dreams. Like the furniture that sags, so does a little plant belonging to Mama. The feeble plant growing doggedly in a pot on the window sill represents the suffering and disillusionment that Mama and other poor blacks experience when they find themselves entrenched in deplorable living conditions. Throughout much of the play, Mama tends to this withering plant that suffers because the apartment has only one, small window, through which comes a minimal amount of sunlight. That little plant is the symbol of hope for a family determined to escape the squalor and violence of the ghetto (White Supremacy, 1999). Linked to the plant is the garden that Mama envisions whenever she thinks of the new house and money. The symbol of money (lack of money) is used to portray hardship and social inequalities. “Money is life. Once upon a time freedom used to be life—now it’s money. I guess the world really do change” (Hansberry, p. 32). The Youngers struggle to find an exit from the ghetto but fail because they do not have enough money to prove their personal identity and become free from oppression and segregation (Abell, p. 430).
The theme of hunger is often associated with ghetto living. Hansberry uses food to symbolize the emotional or spiritual deprivation that results when dreams are thwarted. One of the early scenes centers around Ruth insisting that Walter Lee eat his eggs. Each time Walter Lee attempts to talk to his wife about his dreams of becoming an entrepreneur, she tries to circumvent the issue by offering him eggs. When Walter Lee complains, for example, that black men are yoked to a race of narrow-minded women, Ruth disinterestedly tells him that he should eat his eggs and be quiet. Later, when Walter Lee comes home inebriated because Mama will not give him money to invest in a liquor store, Ruth offers him hot milk. Lashing out at her, Walter Lee demands to know why Ruth keeps trying to feed him. Ruth despondently replies, “What else can I give you, Walter Lee Younger?” (Hansberry, p. 74). Ruth cannot satisfy her husband’s yearnings to excel, so she tries to satiate him with food. Hansberry again uses food to suggest yearning or emotional hunger in the nickname given to Beneatha by the African intellectual, Asagai. He refers to Beneatha as “Alaiyo,” translating into “One for whom Bread – Food – is Not enough” (Hansberry, p. 52). Hansberry demonstrates that even the poorest of people hunger and thirst for a dignified existence, one in which they are validated as human beings and full citizens in America (Abell, p. 430).
Loosing hopes and false dreams shape the feeling of racial inequalities and oppression. Even more representative of Hansberry’s disappointment with stereotyping is Walter Lee’s plan to shuffle and grin in order to get money from Lindner. Walter Lee, once he loses the family’s inheritance, decides that he will give Lindner what white America expects from blacks: subservience and buffoonery. Hansberry pokes fun at whites who mutilate black speech (White Supremacy, 1999). Walter Lee tells his family that he will put on a grand performance by crawling on the floor when Lindner arrives and by saying to him, ” Captain, Mistuh, Bossman… A-hee-hee-hee!… just gi’ ussen de money, fo’ God’s sake” (Hansberry, p. 124). These references point to Hansberry’s outrage over racial stereotyping that stems from ignorance about blacks. These themes guide readers through emotional and ironical situations and support plot development (Harrison, p. 567).
In sum, Hansberry skillfully portrays racism and poverty, oppression and inequalities faced by many black people of her time. YUsing unique themes, she underlines that these are problems that seriously affect the quality of life for African Americans. The tone of the play is shaped by the development of such symbols as shabby furniture and the plant, the theme of hunger and oppression range from disappointment to outrage.
Works Cited
Abell, J.L. African/American: Lorraine Hansberry’s Les Blancs and the American Civil Rights Movement. African American Review 35 (2001): 459.
Hansberry, L. “A Raisin in the Sun,” in A Raisin in the Sun and The Sign in Sidney Brustein’s Window. New York: New American Library, 1966, pp. 11-130.
Harrison, P. C. The Crisis of Black Theatre Identity. African American Review 31 (1997): 567-569.
White Supremacy and the Critical Reception of Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun. 1999.
The book, A Raisin in the Sun, clearly Lorraine Hansberry’s masterpiece, presents a 1950s life of a family- the Youngers; the family is caught up with individualism as they make decisions regarding money acquired from insurance. Between racial constrictions, the family struggles with identity of the American dream as it casts back a view on Africa. The progression of the story has a family collapsing to individual conflicting decisions. But amidst of the differences in interest, the family believes and depends on ‘togetherness’ as the key to its success.
Masculinist Stereotypes, Distortions and Missions in Male Dominated Literature as Displayed in the Book
Lorraine Hansberry wrote the play at a period when feminism was obviously a contending issue in human society, particularly in the Western World- during the 1960s. As such, as an effort to ‘carry women along’, three (3) of the characters in the play; Ruth, Mama and Benetha, who are all ladies, were significantly engaged in family decision making. By extension, these ladies supported the family greatly contrary to the role played by Walter.
The story consciously confines the characters within a local home, and equally restricts the characters’ social performances – thus, in a way gives all characters the same degree of freedom in decision making. This, as an illustration, sees a certain Beneatha become rather determined to be a physician; against all monetary challenges the family faced.
It is clear from all indications that Mama has a leading voice in the family, despite the conflicts of the family to resolving to unified decisions. The statement
“there is still a god in my mothers house” (Hansberry 19) directed at Benetha by Mama is no doubt a leading voice. In the same way, in Act I scene i, where Beneatha argued about the lack of support to the family by God, Mama was proactive in cautioning that no such words or assertions be made in her own home (Hansberry 13).
The adaptation of symbolism in the play equally has helped immensely in curbing masculinist stereotypes and distortions. The fundamentally used symbols included Walter’s liquor-store, Mama’s plant, as well as Ruth’s expectant child. At the end, Mama’s plant overshadows the other imagery used in the story.
From an analytical point of view, A Raisin in the Sun may be seen as having identified in clear contexts masculine discriminations- particularly as regarding decision making in a male dominated family setting. The play particularly resolves the fact that decision making is not necessarily a gender based matter. As such, any member of the family or society who has an active and significant voice (or point of view) is always welcome to contribute.
The play also identify that fact that with a deterministic frame of mind, the female gender has a lot of potential to drive the decision making process, both at the family and society levels to the most acceptable level.
Conclusion
Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun is a sparkling story that presents characters that are very determined to realizing specified set dreams- against the common interest of the family. This setting makes it possible for the family members to out-speak their minds in an effort to actualize personal dreams. Indirectly, the story stipulates that individuals have high potentials to realizing personal dreams irrespective of gender.
Works cited
Hansberry, Lorraine. A Raisin in the Sun. New York: Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, 1959. Print.
A Raisin in the Sun is a three-act play set entirely in the Younger family’s Chicago tenement apartment. As the play opens, Walter Younger, Sr., referred to as “Big Walter,” has recently died, leaving his widow, Lena, a life insurance policy worth $10,000.
Lena wants to use the money as a down payment on a house in the suburbs so that her family can leave its crowded, shabby apartment. Lena’s son, Walter, wants to invest the money in a liquor store so that he can quit his job as a rich white man’s chauffeur and become his boss. Beneatha, Walter’s younger sister, a college student, wants to use part of the money to pay for her medical school tuition. Ruth, Walter’s pregnant wife, sides with Lena.
The debate over how to spend the insurance money threatens to destroy the Younger family. Walter insults his sister by telling her to forget about medical school and become a nurse or get married like other women. Lena expresses misgivings about Walter’s plan to invest in the liquor business, and he, in turn, accuses his mother of destroying his dream of becoming a successful businessman and providing for his family.
When Lena refuses to give Walter the $10,000 that he needs for his investment, he stops working and starts drinking heavily. Ruth considers having an abortion because she does not want to add another family member to the Youngers’ crowded apartment. Watching her family unravel, Lena attempts a compromise that she hopes will satisfy everyone. She puts $3,500 down on a single-family home in Clybourne Park, an all-white suburban neighborhood, and hands Walter the rest of the money, ordering him to deposit $3,000 in a bank account earmarked for Beneatha’s medical school tuition and allowing him to invest the remaining $3,500 as he sees fit. (Carter, 130)
Initially, Lena’s compromise appeases all parties, but disaster strikes the Youngers a few weeks later, as the family is packing for its move to Clybourne Park. Walter’s friend, Bobo, arrives and informs Walter that their partner in the liquor store business has taken Walter’s money—including Beneatha’s tuition money and skipped town. Humiliated, Walter announces that the family will recoup some of its lost money by selling its house to the Clybourne Park Improvement Association, whose representative, Mr. Linder, has made an offer to buy the Youngers’ property at a profit to keep a black family from integrating an all-white neighborhood.
At the end of act 2, as the Youngers glumly await Mr. Linder’s arrival to close the deal, the family is once again at the point of disintegration. Beneatha calls Walter a “toothless rat” for losing the family’s money and capitulating Mr. Linder. Lena chastises Beneatha and offers sympathetic words for her son, but Walter seems a defeated man. When Linder arrives, however, Walter undergoes a dramatic change.
Standing behind his son, Travis, whom Lena has ordered to be present when the sale of the home is made, Walter calmly explains to Linder that his family has decided to occupy its new home. Walter speaks eloquently of his father’s hard work and his family’s pride. He introduces Beneatha as a future doctor and proudly introduces Travis as the sixth generation of Youngers in the United States. (Abramson, 150) In the short final act, the moving men have arrived, and the Youngers are proudly departing for Clybourne Park, optimistically looking forward to living in their new home.
Analysis
Lorraine Hansberry’s play introduces young readers to crucial issues in the African American community: the fragmentation of the family, the black male’s quest for manhood, and the problems associated with integration. Lena is the prototypical African American matriarch who struggles to hold her family together in the face of poverty and discrimination. Although Walter’s eloquent speech to Mr. Linder at the end of act 2 saves the Youngers from disgrace, Lena is the play’s moral center, urging the members of her extended family to end their quarreling, accept their responsibilities, and love one another.
Walter’s quest for manhood is another key theme in Hansberry’s drama. Walter wants to replace Big Walter as the head of the Younger family, but he is barely able to support the Youngers on his chauffeur’s wages. He also shows himself to be irresponsible with money, and he has a tendency to walk away or turn to drink when family problems arise. Although he frequently falters along the way, Walter demonstrates by the end of the play that he can replace his deceased father as the head of the family. In the play’s final scene, Lena tells Ruth that Walter “finally come into his manhood today… like a rainbow after the rain.” (Schlueter, 55) Hansberry wants the audience to believe that Walter’s change is both significant and permanent: He has become a man.
Equally absorbing is Hansberry’s dramatization of Beneatha’s quest for womanhood. She is a young woman attempting to break away from the pattern set by the other Younger women, Lena and Ruth. They are wives, mothers, and maids; Beneatha is in college and aspires to become a physician, a virtually unattainable occupation for African American women of the 1950s.
During the play, she is pursued by two suitors who try to steer her in their own directions: George Murchison, the son of a wealthy African American businessman, and Joseph Asagai, a Nigerian student studying in the United States. (Meyer, 1731) Beneatha rejects the option of becoming the well-to-do wife of George, and, although she is fascinated by the lost African culture that Asagai represents, she will probably remain independent and go in her own direction.
Hansberry’s play gives young adult readers insights into the African American community at the beginning of the Civil Rights movement. At the time of the play, the doors of opportunity, if not open, are at least unlocked for African Americans. Walter can dream of becoming an entrepreneur.
Beneatha can hope to become a doctor. Lena can purchase a house in the suburbs. Nevertheless, as the bitter arguments among Lena, Walter, and Beneatha suggest, the age of new opportunities creates problems in the Younger family, problems that reflect the tensions in the African American community at the commencement of the Civil Rights movement. (Schlueter, 55) Moreover, Hansberry suggests that many of the old prejudices persist, as evidenced by Mr. Linder’s attempt to keep an African American family out of his neighborhood.
The play’s title comes from a poem by Langston Hughes entitled “Harlem”: “What happens to a dream deferred?/ Does it dry up/ Like a raisin in the sun?/ Maybe it just sags/ Like a heavy load./ Or does it explode?” The Younger family’s dream of breaking out of poverty and enjoying the fruits of American society has been deferred for many years.
Big Walter’s insurance policy presents an opportunity for the Youngers’ dream to become a reality. Through the Youngers, Hansberry asks how African Americans will deal with the opportunities confronting them in the post-World War II years. (Riley, 211) Will those deferred dreams dry up? Will they explode in frustration and anger? In A Raisin in the Sun, the playwright seems to suggest that those deferred dreams, at last, can be fulfilled, although the struggle to fulfill them will be difficult.
A Raisin in the Sun deals with two problems: the discords of a family with high hopes, and the social injustice of segregation. The two Younger children, Beneatha and Walter, are both determined to improve their station in life. Walter, however, struggles only with dreams of success, while Beneatha realistically takes college courses that will lead to her becoming a doctor. In one way, both are fighting the oppression of racism, but it is Beneatha who seems cool to understand that the oppression will be conquered only through hard work. Wise enough to know that the family will survive only through wise management, Lena Younger uses her insurance money to buy a house.
She has bought it, however, in a segregated area, and though she is willing to face that battle when it comes, the ominous appearance of Lindner, who wants to buy out the Youngers to avoid their moving it to Clybourne Park, threatens future difficulties. (Schlueter, 51)
Yet racial segregation is not the major theme of the play. The major theme is that families must remain united; when family members act selfishly, as Walter does when he takes his mother’s money and invests it in a fly-by-night scheme to buy a liquor store, the family may disintegrate. This very nearly happens to the Youngers. At the last minute, however, Walter realizes what he is doing and abruptly rejects Lindner’s offer (though he had threatened to accept it). (Carter, 128) The unity of the family is saved. The problem of moving into a white neighborhood lies in the future. For the present, the Youngers have proven that in unity lies strength. (Meyer, 1730)
Lorraine Hansberry uses few innovative dramatic devices in A Raisin in the Sun. Her play rests on tried-and-true methods of domestic drama, with loud and emotional confrontations, as well as clear individual portraits. The setting remains the same throughout the play—the Youngers’ apartment in Chicago’s ghetto. Ruth, a calm young woman who is rapidly growing old in her life with Walter, provides a contrast with her husband, who is emotional and unreasonable. Mama herself is a counter to her two children, both of whom are high-strung and self-willed. Mama remains solid and hard-thinking when dealing with difficult problems, although she is clearly too indulgent with Walter and Beneatha. (Abramson, 152)
One device is used openly: the symbol of Mama’s plant. The poor, fragile houseplant is Mama’s symbol of the future, of her house-to-be, where she will have a garden of her own. The plant, at the end of the play, is almost forgotten by Mama when she leaves, but she returns to take it with her. Diction also is a dramatic device that Hansberry uses to reveal her characters. Joseph Asagai speaks in an inflated language that promises great and wonderful things, but he has also a bit of the fraud in him. Beneatha, who is a college student, speaks with an educated diction; in stage directions, however, Hansberry directs the actress to keep in mind the family’s Southern origins. Walter uses the language of the ghetto but is contemptuous of the subservient language he must use as a chauffeur when addressing his employers.
Conclusion
Lorraine Hansberry was very fortunate: Her first major full-length play, A Raisin in the Sun, not only was produced on Broadway but also was a smashing success. Hansberry’s portrait of an average black family, its sorrows and struggles, is a mainstream play, in that it avoids rage and denunciations. It is a down-to-earth presentation of the everyday problems of a black family.
Its principal characters are mostly white, yet it is a more argumentative play than A Raisin in the Sun. Although technically a family play, its conflicts are more shrill than reasonable. The rest of Hansberry’s output falls under the heading of posthumous works. The play contains several set speeches, which tend to slow the pace. It is a far less polished dramatic vehicle than her other two full-length plays. The play contains excerpts from her letters, journals, and speeches, as well as from plays finished and unfinished. It presents her ideas on her black heritage and on black life in America.
Works Cited
Abramson, Doris. Negro Playwrights in the American Theater: 1925–1959. New York: Columbia University Press, (1969): 148-153.
Carter, Steven R. Hansberry’s Drama: Commitment amid Complexity. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, (1991): 124-132.
Meyer, Michael.
The Bedford Introduction to Literature: Reading-Thinking-Writing. 5th Edition. Publisher: Bedford, New York, U.S.A. (1999): pp. 1730-31.
Riley, Clayton. “Lorraine Hansberry: A Melody in a Different Key.” Freedomways 19, no. 4 (1979): 205–212.
Schlueter, June, ed. Modern American Drama: The Female Canon. Cranbury, N.J.: Associated University Presses, (1990): 45-57.
Walter Lee is the only protagonist and antagonist at the same time in A Raisin in the Sun. As the play opens, Walter comes out conspicuously due to his ideologies concerning the money the Youngers are about to receive from an insurance firm as life insurance policy for the deceased Mr. Youngers.
Every person in the Youngers family has a different idea on how they should spend the money. Mama, the mother of the house wants to buy a house for the family. Beneatha, Youngers’ daughter wants to pay for her school tuition using part of the money. Ruth, Walter’s wife, supports the idea of buying a house for the family because this would mean better future life for her son Travis.
On the other hand, Walter seems to have a dream for the family. He wants to invest the money in a joint liquor store and co-own it with his acquaintances. This notion of investing for the sake of the family paints Walter as a responsible person; however, his undertakings are poor, exposing his immaturity and gullibility. Nevertheless, with time, he beats all these challenges to become the foundation of this family.
Walter Lee Younger Character Analysis
As aforementioned, Walter is the most outstanding character in this play. He is Travis’ cherishing dad, Ruth’s noncompliant hubby, Mama’s boy, and Beneatha’s combatant brother. As the play opens, he fights with nearly every one around him. In Act one, Travis is asking for fifty cents required in school; however, as Ruth tries to explain to Travis how they do not have it, Walter comes from nowhere and gives Travis one dollar. This shows Walters blatant immaturity.
A dollar is a lot of money compared to the required fifty cents. Moreover, disapproving Ruth in front of Travis is contemptuous and immature. He then confronts Beneatha and tells her that she should just forget her medicine course for it would cut into the cheque from the insurance firm. It emerges that the one dollar that Walter had given Travis was meant for his transport. The fact that he gives his transport money knowing that he has to travel to work echoes his immaturity.
Act one scene II, opens with Walter fighting Beneatha for no reason. He promises Willy; his friend and imminent business collaborate that he will take money to him immediately. This promise is immature; Walter knows very well that getting the money to invest in his business remains a point of contention, yet he promises Willy that he would take the money. That evening when he comes home, Walter is only interested in talking about his business contrives.
Ruth wants to talk about her pregnancy; however, this does not bother Walter. He is so engrossed in his business plans that he does not care whether Ruth aborts or not. As a mature responsible father and husband, Walter should address this issue but he chooses to overlook everything, this is immaturity.
After Mama announces that she has paid down payment on the family house, Walter cannot believe it and he accuses his mother of betraying him and thrashing his dream to own a business. He goes into drinking spree for three days until his boss calls Ruth to enquire what has happened. However, when Mama gives him $6,500, to invest part of it in his business, Walter becomes a more responsible man.
He tells Travis how he would invest in a good business that would make their lives better by the time Travis is seventeen. “Your daddy’s gonna make a…business transaction that’s going to change our lives” (Hansberry 23). At least this is a vision of a responsible man who cares about the future of his family (BookRags Para. 5). Nevertheless, this is only the beginning Walter’s change.
In Act II, scene III, Walter is a changed man. He takes Ruth for dinner and makes her happy all the time. For the first time Walter and Beneatha shares a humorous moment as a brother and a sister. When Mr. Lindner comes to urge the Youngers to stop purchasing the house in Clybourne Park because the residents are opposed to it, Walter stands for his family, tells Mr. Lindner that they do not need the money he is offering and requests him to leave immediately.
Walter is now maturing and takes the responsibility of family head as required of him in the absence of his father. Even after Willy Harris runs with his money, he remains composed. Walter’s maturity comes out clearly, when he stands to defend his family. (CliffNotes Para. 6).
When mama decides to reverse her decision of buying the family house, Walter stands his ground and reverses his decision to sign Mr. Lindner’s papers that would prevent them from moving to Clybourne Park. Walter says, “He says, “We have decided to move into our house because my father—my father—he earned it for us brick by brick. We don’t want to make no trouble for nobody or fight no causes, and we will try to be good neighbours. Moreover, that’s all we got to say about that. We don’t want your money” (Hansberry 31). The family moves in their new house, they resolve to dissolve their selfish ambitions and work together, and they owe their unity to Walter.
Conclusion
Walter is a man with many faces in this story. From an irresponsible immature father, husband, brother and a son, he fights many fights to become his family’s foundation (Robert Para. 9). He made many mistakes like making unwise investment among others. However, as the story ends, he becomes a responsible person. He refuses Mr. Lindner’s money, a move that brings unity, joy, and peace in the family, hence becoming the cornerstone of the family.