Secondary Characters In Lorraine Hansberry's A Raisin In The Sun

Although they don’t appear as important characters, secondary characters serve an important purpose through the interactions they have with the main characters. The secondary characters we meet in A Raisin in the Sun all represent different aspects and people in the Younger family. George Murchinson and Joseph Asagai show us more about Beneatha, while Willy Harris shows us more about Walter, and Mr.Lidner and Travis show us more about the whole family. George and Joseph are Beneatha’s two boyfriends that are introduced in the beginning of the play. George is a wealthy, colored man, but Beneatha despises his character saying that ‘the Murchinsons are honest-to-God-real-live-rich colored people, and the only people in the world who are more snobbish than rich white people are rich colored people. (A.1S.1)’ His character shows how Beneatha hates assimilationists and how he has no pride in his heritage. Joseph is the opposite of George because he is accepting of his heritage. Beneatha is in love with Joseph because of this, showing how she herself is proud with her heritage and doesn’t care much for how rich her partner is. Both of these characters show us how Beneatha reacts to people Willy Harris fosters Walter’s American dream and becomes the reason Walter is so obsessed
Mr.Lindner, the racist member of the Clybourne welcoming committee, shows us the racism and prejudice of the society in the 1950s. He goes to the Youngers and attempts to convince them that they shouldn’t move in and sell the house back to the committee. He tells the Youngers that ‘it is a matter of the people of Clybourne Park believing, rightly or wrongly, as I say, that for the happiness of all concerned that our Negro families are happier when they live in their own communities (A.2S.2).’ Lindner’s actions show us the views of the society and how they affect the family and their dream of moving to a better