Compare And Contrast Lena And Ruth In A Raisin In The Sun

In the play, A Raisin in the Sun, written by Lorraine Hansberry, Portrays a few weeks in the Southside of Chicago in the 1950s. The Youngers are waiting for a ten thousand dollar check from the deceased Mr. Younger’s life insurance. They’re trying to come up with ideas of what to do with the money. The money represents the opportunity to fulfill the dreams from each member of the family. Through the characters of Lena and Ruth, it shows how both have the same dream, but also has some differences. As we have seen, Both Lena and Ruth have a dream about living in a house. In one of the settings that took place was when Lena discusses with Ruth when Mr. Younger and her was looking for houses when they were youthful. Lena explains that “We was
going to set away, little by little, don’t you know, and buy a little place out in Morgan Park. We had even picked out the house. Looks right dumpy today. But Lord, child, you should know all the dreams I had ’bout buying that house and fixing it up and making me a little garden in the back.”(Lena act 1, scene 1) Ever since her young, Lena had dreams about having a house, but didn’t get a chance to have one because she and Mr. Younger didn’t have the money at that time. Another occasion occurs when Lena total everyone that moving into a house, Ruth stand up and said “ Well— well!—All I can say is—if this is my time in life—MY TIME —to say goodbye—to these goddamned cracking walls—and these marching roaches!——and this cramped little closet which ain’t now or never was no kitchen! … then I say it loud and good, HALLELUJAH! AND GOODBYE MISERY … I DON'T NEVER WANT TO SEE YOUR UGLY FACE AGAIN!” To Ruth, it is an opportunity to make her dream into reality. Even though Lena and Ruth have the same dream, but their reasons are different to each other. To Lena, she wants to buys a house so that the family can have the chance to have a better lifestyle that she wanted during her youth with Mr. younger. She mentions that “Big Walter used to say, he’d get right wet in the eyes sometimes, lean his head back with the water standing in his eyes and say, "Seem like God didn’t see fit to give the black man nothing but dreams – but He did give us children to make them dreams seem worth while.” Lena would work hard enough to help her family for future generations to come. As for Ruth, even through her dream is similar to Lena’s, the only difference is that she wants to create a happy family and thinks that getting a bigger and better place is one step to make that dream in reality. She mentions this to walter in the following friday morning. She told walter that “Honey…life don’t have to be like this. I mean sometimes people can do things so that things are better…You remember how we used to talk when Travis was born…about the way we were going to live…the kind of house…Well, it’s all starting to slip away from us.” Ruth’s dream is one that she and Walter inversion when they both got marry and she wants this dream to become reality for travis.