Throughout the 1950s life was very limited for African American women. They were racially discriminated against and classified as second-class. African American people were afraid to stand up for their rights, and the limited freedoms they had were lost. In the 1950’s colored people were mistreated and abused by white people because of their lower status. 'A Raisin in the Sun, written by Lorraine Hansberry demonstrated that the Negro playwright has lost the intellectual and, therefore, technical and creative, ability to deal with his own special ethnic group materials in dramatic form' (Brown, 238). Segregation was enforced all around the world, white people sat at the front of the bus, while black people sat at the back. In schools, there were separate water fountains for colored and whites, as well as washrooms. If someone was ever caught using the wrong water fountains or washrooms, they were brutally punished. Career options for African American people were also limited because higher-paying jobs were awarded to white people. The civil rights movement was introduced during the 1950s. “In 1963, Hansberry became active in the Civil Rights Movement. Along with other influential people, including Harry Belafonte, Lena Horne, and James Baldwin, Hansberry met with then attorney general Robert Kennedy to test his position on civil rights” (Biography.com). In “A Raisin in the Sun”, written by Lorraine Hansberry the play demonstrates how Lena, Beneatha, and Ruth who are independent African American women deal with racial discrimination within the various stages of their lives and how they overcome the many challenges they were faced with.
Ruth Younger is married to Walter and the mother of Travis. She is the daughter-in-law to Lena and sister-in-law to Beneatha. Ruth is the newest member of the Younger family. She is a very loving and soft character and holds back anger in tough situations. She is a very pretty woman who is unhappy with the lifestyle she is living. Ruth, alongside the other members of the Younger family continually has to fight poverty although remaining strong women. She lives a very challenging life but even through all of the adversity, she does not let those challenges stand in the way of life. Ruth remains positive even though her life is boring. She lives in a small apartment with the Younger family and takes care of it. She is 30 years old but her tiredness makes her seem a lot older than she is. Her and Walter’s marriage has many problems, but she hopes that one day they will revive the love they once had between them. Ruth feels at fault for not being able to give Walter everything he wants. Ruth doesn't feel like she is providing as well as she is capable of and feels as though she is disappointing him. Ruth suddenly becomes pregnant and is willing to get an abortion because she believes they can not afford to have a baby. She thinks she would be better off aborting the child for her family's sake. When she tells Lena and Beneatha they are overwhelmed with joy. Even though it does not clearly say whether she keeps the baby or not, it is safe to just assume that she does not make the rational decision of not keeping her child. The many dreams Ruth has are very realistic and can be easily achieved. Ruth and Lena are different and do not share the same viewpoints. When they argue, Ruth expresses those frustrations with her significant other Walter. Ruth is the type of person who always has to please everyone and create a positive environment around her. Ruth is also one to apologize for everything, even if she is right. She does not want to be involved in conflict and would rather see the world to be at peace. Ruth respectfully listens to advice anyone is willing to offer. Although Ruth is an extremely quiet character and chooses to keep her voice at a lower level, she demonstrates how incredibly strong she is for all that she has endured.
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Lena Younger, also known as “Mama” is a strong and wise woman. She is a very motivated character in the play, described as an older woman in her early 60s with white hair. Lena is a faithful Christian woman and the matriarch of the younger family. She is the mother of Walter and Beneatha and Travis’s grandmother. Lena has dedicated her whole life to her children not only providing for them but also helping them strive for greatness. “I come from five generations of people who were slaves and sharecroppers but ain’t nobody pays 'em no money that was a way of telling us we weren’t fit to work the earth” (Hansberry, 1931). Although throughout the play she has struggled to connect with both of her children, Walter and Beneatha both have their problems and different opinions on the world. She worries that Walter may have a money problem and in the middle of the play, he proves that by giving away the inheritance money. Lena also strongly disapproves of Beneatha's lack of faith in god. Being so religious Mama was very disappointed at Beneatha’s negative attitude towards god. While in disbelief she ends up slapping Beneatha across the face. Mama is a very hardworking and down-to-earth African American woman who struggles to deal with racism and discrimination daily. Mama is an underprivileged woman and despite the lack of money she wants to fulfill her dream of owning her own house with a garden in the backyard. She remains optimistic despite financial and social challenges. Despite those challenges, she has to also deal with losing her husband so soon as well as losing a child. She wants to escape the world she is a part of to escape poverty. She wants to make something of herself and move up in the world. Most African Americans lack stability and Mama wants to be able to live in a world where her rare is accepted. She would like to be someone of worth and merit. Although she demonstrates many challenges being an African American woman in the 1950’s she remains a wise and faithful woman.
Beneatha, also known as Bennie is characterized as one of the smartest females within the play. She is 20 years old slim girl with thick wild hair. Beneatha is not described as being pretty but has a beauty of her own. She has countless career opportunities ahead of her. Although not want to be ordinary, she is always willing to try new things, such as operating a gator, taking guitar lessons, and horseback riding. Within the younger family, she is very knowledgeable and for that, she feels very unique. Throughout her play, she struggles with finding her true identity. Although Beneatha’s dignity is very important to her she remains very independent. She has high ambition to succeed and is immensely intellectual. Beneatha dates two men within the play. Joseph Asagai is a young Nigerian boy, when they met they instantly fell in love, but he ended up accusing her of not being satisfied with the relationship. George Murchison is a rich-colored boy who also dates Beneatha and does not take any of her thoughts seriously. In both relationships she acts very differently, while she is with Asagai she is the happiest she has ever been. While dating George she becomes very depressed and angry. The financial problems within the play affect her substantially because her dream is to become a doctor and all the cash she was supposed to receive, Lena was going to put towards medical school. She does not want to take money from her mother “That money belongs to Mama, Walter and it’s not for her to decide how she wants to use it. I don’t care if she wants to buy a house or a rocket ship or just nail it up somewhere and look at it. It’s hers. Not ours-hers” (Hansberry, 1878). While being so strongly educated, Bennie will not settle with following the basic social norms. Beneatha struggles with not being as independent as she would like to be and realizes that she has to depend on the insurance money from her father's death to get her through medical school. Since the money she was supposed to receive is gone, she must face the fact that her dream of being a doctor is gone.
The Younger family shows how overcoming racial discrimination is possible. The play debuted on Broadway in 1959. The play takes place in the Washington Park Subdivision of Chicago's Woodlawn neighborhood. The younger family all had their dreams that they wanted to pursue. When they lost their father they were heartbroken and did not know if they could continue life without him. African American people living in the 1950’s had to deal with segregation in many forms. Overall how colored people were treated was disgraceful, the Younger family showed incredible passion in attempting to achieve their dreams. The challenges they faced forced them to adapt and become strong powerful women. (1618)
Works Cited
- Brown Lloyd, “Lorraine Hansberry as Ironist A Reappraisal of “A Raisin in the Sun” Journal of Black Studies, Vol 4, No.3, Sage Publications, Inc. March 1974, pp 237-247. JSTOR. https://www.jstor.org/stable/2783655
- Hansberry, Lorraine. “A Raisin in the Sun” Literature: Reading Fiction, Poetry, and Drama, edited by Robert Diyanni 6th ed. Mcgraw-Hill, 2007, pp. 1871-1935.
- “Lorraine Hansberry.” Biography.com, A&E Networks Television, 16 Jan. 2019, www.biography.com/people/lorraine-Hansberry-9327823
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