The American Dream Deferred In Hansberry's A Raisin In The Sun

Aisha Craig
Professor Campbell
English 112-07
September 19, 2014
The American Dream Deferred
Hansberry’s play A Raisin in the Sun is titled after a line in Langston Hughes’ 1951 poem, Harlem (A Dream Deferred). Back in the 1950’s, African Americans were oppressed by the belief of the principle ‘separate but equal’ and because of this system, many African Americans perceived their claim on their ‘American dream’ was ‘deferred’ or forced to be put off. Hansberry’s play is set in Chicago’s Southside. It focuses on the Younger family, where three generations, five family members, live under the same household of abysmal conditions. Hansberry infers how the lack of money contributes to these conditions. Hansberry relates how each family member
has a dream deferred and how money is the key to that dream fulfillment.
In the beginning of the play, Hansberry gives us a mental representation of the Younger family’s household. There’s a living room, which was well ordered, but the furnishings were worn out and undistinguished. (Hansberry 335). There are two rooms, one that Mama and her daughter Beneatha share and the other Walter and his wife Ruth share. Their son Travis sleeps on the couch in the living room. (Hansberry 336). The untimely and unfortunate death of the patriarch, Walter Younger Sr. provides the opportunity by which now the family can pursue their dreams. This opportunity is presented by the money obtained from an insurance policy.
Lena Younger is the matriarch of the Younger family.
She is a woman in her early sixties, strong and robust. (Hansberry 347). She is a strong Christian woman. This is evident in her daily speech, where she consistently refers to God and Christian behavior and that is which is right in the eyes of God. A powerful example of her faith is the scene where her daughter is discounting and discrediting God to the very point of His existence. The mother outraged by the statement, slaps her daughter and had her recite, “In my mother’s house, there is still God” and added “There are some ideas we ain’t going to have in this house. Not long as I am at the head of this family”. (Hansberry 356). Lena’s dream was the American dream of home ownership. She wanted to live in a nice neighborhood and have a garden. The plant that she has been caring for years is a symbol of her lifelong desire to have a garden. Here she says, “Well, I wanted me a garden like I used to see sometimes at the back of the houses down home. This plant is close as I ever got to having one”. (Hansberry 357). Lena didn’t share Walter’s vision of entrepreneurship as financial security and success. She stated, “We ain’t no business people, Ruth. We just plain working folks”. (Hansberry 349). She was particularly opposed to the business of selling alcohol. Lena felt that selling liquor was somehow
sinful.
Walter Younger is a lean and intense man in his thirties. (Hansberry 337). He works a chauffeur and is evidently dissatisfied with his job and station in life. (Hansberry 370). This is evident in a statement he makes, “This morning, I was lookin’ in the mirror and thinking about it….I’m thirty five years old; I been married eleven years and I got a boy who sleeps in the living room…and all I got to give him is stories about how rich white people live…” (Hansberry 343). Walter is a dreamer. Walter dreams of being an entrepreneur. Walter wanted to open a liquor store with his two friends, Willy Harris and Bobo. (Hansberry 343). He believes by owning his own business, he will be the master of his own destiny. He believes this is the way for the family to be successful and achieve the American dream. However, his wife Ruth and sister Beneatha are also against the idea.
Ruth, Walter’s wife is a thirty year old, attractive, hard working, Christian woman. She is discouraged by her current condition of an unwanted pregnancy and her current living situation. She feels that another child will be a financial burden to the family and further strain on their overcrowded living conditions. She shares Lena’s dream of home ownership. Therefore, she was not fond of Walter’s idea of investing the money in a business. Ruth had a dislike and very little confidence in Walter’s business partners. She thought of Willy Harris as a good for nothing loudmouth. (Hansberry 342). Furthermore, Walter just speaking of the name Bobo, made her frown. (Hansberry 343). Ruth was tired of hearing about the liquor store. It was all Walter ever talked about. Here, she says, “Honey, you never say nothing new. I listen to you every day, every night and every morning, and you never say nothing new, So you would rather be Mr. Arnold than be his chauffeur. So, I would rather be living in Buckingham Palace”. (Hansberry 344). Here it is evident that Ruth is a realist. She believes that dreams are just dreams and that reality should always be the focus. However, being a dedicated wife, she tried to remain open minded about the idea when talking to Lena. (Hansberry 349).
Beneatha is a twenty year old, attractive, independent minded, intelligent woman (Hansberry 344). Beneatha dreams of becoming a doctor. (Hansberry 345). It all started when she was young. She watched a kid named Rufus fall on steep ice and snow covered stone steps, which split open his face. She thought he would die, but he came back with stitches running down his face. Beneatha knew then that she wanted to help heal and cure people of their ailments. (Hansberry 408). Beneatha hoped to use the insurance money to pay for her education and medical school. However, she believed that the money didn’t belong to Walter or to her. Beneatha believed the money belonged to their mother Lena and it was her decision to decide how the money was spent. Walter adamantly disagreed. (Hansberry 346).
The author suggests that the insurance money is an important key to make all of the Younger family’s dreams become a reality. Later in the play, after the money arrives and decision of what to do with it is heavily considered, Lena buys a nice house in a predominantly white neighborhood on Clybourne Street in Clybourne Park, much to Walter’s dismay. (Hansberry 383-384). However, she only paid 3500 dollars on down payment for the house, which left 6500 dollars. She wanted Walter to take 3,000 dollars and put it in a saving’s account for Beneatha’s medical school and the rest he could have. (Hansberry 389-390). However, Walter was no longer willing for his dream to be deferred. He decided to take the money his mother had entrusted into him, disregard her directions, and instead use it for his own purposes. He gives the money to his partner, so they could travel and make the necessary arrangements to purchase the store, but unfortunately, Willy runs off with money and they are unable locate him. (Hansberry 404-405). Walter and Beneatha’s dreams are shattered. The family now decides to put all their energies into moving into the new house on Clybourne Street, knowing that they wouldn’t be welcomed. (Hansberry 397). Still, the family is enthusiastic about the thought of a new beginning.
The neighborhood association collects money and offers it to the Younger family, as an incentive to move elsewhere and not into their neighborhood. The ladies are insulted and reject the idea immediately. However, Walter toys with the notion, seeing again, an opportunity to realize his dream and open a business. (Hansberry 398).
However, finally coming to a sense of reality, Walter relinquishes and gives into the wishes of the majority. Walter invites Mr. Lindner, the representative of the neighborhood association, (Hansberry 398), back to their house. To Mr. Lindner’s surprise, Walter refuses the money. (Hansberry 419). It is at this point that Walter lets go of his personal dream and defer to the dream of the family. He tells Mr. Lindner:
“I have worked as a chauffeur most of my life, my wife does domestic work in people’s kitchens, so does my mother…My father was a laborer most of his life…My sister is going to be a doctor and we are very proud…We have decided to move into our house because my father earned it. We don’t want to make no trouble for nobody or fight no causes, but we will try to be good neighbors. We don’t want your money”. (Hansberry 419-420).
He stops focusing on owning his own business and focus on taking care of his family.
The central theme in the play is about the fulfillment of dreams.
Hansberry focuses our attention on the individual dreams of family members and their view of how money could fulfill them. We see that money divides the family and interrupts everyone’s goals. In the end, Hansberry shows us that family unity above individual dreams is where we find happiness. In the end, Lena gets a house with a yard that she can garden; Ruth gets space for her and her kids; Beneatha gets the opportunity to continue her education and last, but not least Walter steps into his role of responsible head of the household, truly becoming the
patriarch.
Word Count: 1542
Work Cited
Hansberry, Lorraine. A Raisin in the Sun. The Seagull Reader Plays. Second Edition. Joseph Kelly. W.W. Norton and Company, Inc, 2005-2009. Print