Walter Lee is the head of the family and in the beginning of the play he seems to be extremely bitter. He works for a rich white man as a chauffeur. This easily makes him bitter on the inside because he sees everyday what it is like to be rich. You can tell this because he tells Mama that he sees the rich white boys sitting down to eat every day and he knows they are talking about business or something about closing a million dollar deal. Walter Lee has had many business ideas in the past but they all seem to flop to the ground in a hurry like humpty dumpty. When he comes up with the idea of going into partnership with some men to open a liquor store his Mama is upset with him. He eventually convinces her into giving him a cut of the money from the insurance company after she buys a house for them to move in to. When he gives the money to his partner for the business, his partner runs with the money and is not seen again. This makes Walter very upset and he goes off the deep end for a short amount of time. The need of money may be important but it is definitely not worth losing your family over. After the money is lost, Walter invites the white man back to the apartment to discuss his offer and plans to accept the bribe to his family for them not to move. When the man gets to the apartment, Walter changes his mind and tells the…
In the beginning of the story Walter was trying to pressure his mother into giving him all the money she received from his father’s life insurance policy. “Do you know what this money can do for us Mama -Mama I want so many…
At first, all Walter seems to care about is owning a liquor store with his two friends, Willy and Bobo. For example, one way he is trying to attempt his goal is by using Big Walter’s insurance money. He thinks that this is a good idea because it is an opportunity for him to make contributions for his family. In addition, Mama helps him out when she gives him $3500 to invest in a liquor store even…
In the story A Raisin in the sun by Lorraine Hansberry is a story about a poor family and how money has caused them to change the way the view life completely. The children of mama have all fallen far from her. she says that life is about being free and having family that cares about you. her kids think it’s all about money. The plot is the same in both. In both walter Lee Younger thinks it,s a good idea to invest the money in a liquor store. Beneatha Younger wants to invest the money in her education. Mama and rose want to buy a house. The story then tells you how each one wants to use and spends the money.…
He is also passionate, ambitious, and bursting with the energy of his dream. As he saw everything all starting to slip away, he exploded at mama for taking away his chance at a future filled with possibility and money. Now that Walter friend took his money and ran off with it, Walter is desperate. He sinks to a new low and calls Mr.Lindner.…
Since the foundation of the United States of America it has always be portrayed as the land of endless opportunities in which its people can do freely what they desire. This is also known as the American Dream, which is set of ideals in which freedom includes the opportunity for prosperity and success, achieved through hard work. However, can prosperity and success be achieved by everyone or do certain ethnic groups have discriminatory barriers limiting their success? In the play A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry it becomes painfully clear that African Americans have to deal with racial prejudices complicating the completion of their desired dreams of a better prosperous future. Even though, the diverse…
A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry is a story about a family whose continues to struggle while reaching towards the American Dream. The American Dream is described as “the ideal that every US citizen should have an equal opportunity to achieve success and prosperity through hard work, determination, and initiative.” The Youngers are a hardworking family who all have different interpretations of the American Dream. Mama, Walter, and Beneatha’s shared powerful dreams that give the a look into the American Dream. Through hardships, exciting moments, and fighting between the family gives a look that not all dreams are easy to reach, but it gets achieved one way or another.…
Why they all so excited about that insurance money? Since Big Walter passed, we’d all known that cheque would come someday. Ten thousand dollars…in my hands. Just a slip of paper in my own bare hands, with four zeros written on it, clear as clear can be. This money, this cheque, this one slip of paper, could rise this family up, or tear it down, into pieces, pieces and pieces. I don’t know about this money alright, it sure will change my family, but will it change us for the worse or the better?…
Walter Lee Younger reaches personal success by achieving personal growth and improvement. In the beginning of this book, Walter is irresponsible and selfish which is shown through many occasions such when Mama tells Walter “Ruth is thinking ‘bout getting rid of that child.” (75) And later “Walter… has obviously been drinking.” (pg. 77) Essentially, Walter learns that his wife is pregnant and thinking of getting an abortion, and being the irresponsible selfish man he was, he went out and got drunk. Additionally, we learn that Walters’s investment did not work out and Mama asks him about his sister Beneetha’s money and he says “Mama… I never… went to the bank at all...” (pg. 129) This quote indicates how utterly conceited he really was, to throw all of his sister’s money laid out for her tuition just for his own investment. It also shows that he no longer has any self worth or pride in himself or his family, which is obviously…
Over the course of A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry, the main character, Walter Younger, struggles with immense moral conflicts. As a result of Walter ejecting a white man from his house and, consequently, fighting racism, it becomes evident that he has matured and adopted the role of head of household. In the beginning of the play, it is shown that Walter selfishly dreams about providing for his family and releasing them from the demons of poverty. When Mama gains a great deal of insurance money, Walter desires to build a liquor store and when she puts a down payment on a house instead, he is deeply saddened. He decides to hurt his mother by saying that she ruined his life, which is an extremely childish reaction: “You run our lives like you want to. It was your…
On the other side of the story, there is George Wilson. He is a simple minded man that owns his own auto shop. He doesn’t have much money himself and is constantly struggling to make ends meet, for example, when George constantly begs Tom to sell him his old car so that he could have make a good amount of money. George gets cheated on by his wife which makes him…
The reality of being unable to achieve his dreams burdens Walter and eventually changes him into a greedy, selfish and cowardly young man who makes poor decisions and hurts those who love him. Walter’s obsession with money has caused his family a lot of trouble, especially when it comes to the discussion of the $10,000 insurance money they receive. He belittles Beneatha’s dreams of becoming a doctor and says, “Ain’t many girls who decide to be a doctor”(36). Walter even claims that spending money on Beneatha’s education is a waste, and that he and Ruth would have been richer and happier if Beneatha dropped school. Not only does he put down Beneatha’s dreams, he also selfishly wants all of the insurance money so that he can open a liquor store to make his own dream of being rich and successful come true. Ruth thought Walter was a dreamer and tells him to “eat your eggs” (34) every time he brings up his dreams. When he realizes that he none of his family supports his desire to opening a liquor store, he becomes a bitter and cowardly man. When Ruth tells him that she is pregnant and considering an abortion, he…
The 1950s was a time of ongoing struggle against racism and segregation. An African American woman during these times faced many obstacles, and it was increasingly difficult to pursue her dreams. Lorraine Hansberry’s drama, A Raisin in the Sun, focuses on the conflicts that the Younger family face due to a $10,000 insurance check that has the potential to improve their lives immensely. For Beneatha Younger, this check is the key to moving forward and achieving her dream of becoming a doctor. Beneatha, being a confident and independent young woman, denies all aspects of “assimilationism” and insists on pursuing a professional or white-collar career. However, she is so focused on accomplishing this dream, she does not realize her self-centered and arrogant attitude.Through many valuable interactions with characters such as Asagai and Walter, Beneatha comes to realize she must value the success of the family over her own dreams.…
Walter’s life takes a traumatic turn when he learns that he has lung cancer and is only expected to live another few years with treatment. His only concern upon learning this is the financial burden this will place upon his family. They were already tight on money with Walter Jr.’s medical bills and the upcoming birth of a second child. Because of this, Walter initially refuses chemotherapy, claiming he wants to live out his days in the comfort of his own home with his family. However, when he is convinced by his…
Walter in “A Raisin in the Sun” has a problem with his family. Since Walter’s family is going through a depression, the reader can expect the Water Lee family is facing internal conflicts. An internal conflict is a problem that deal’s with a person’s emotions. Walter Lee has a major internal conflict with money which leads to other problems with his family.At the beginning of the play Travis who is Walter’s son wanted an amount of money but Ruth kept refusing to give him that amount of money but Walter gave it to him anyway so he doesn’t find out they’re poor. Walter was a limousine driver for a rich person. Also, Walter’s mom has a check of 10,000 dollars. But she doesn’t want to use it for his dreams. immediately after it receives the check…