The play/novel A Raisin in the Sun, by Lorraine Hansberry is a very important piece of literature that represents African American people living through a life of social and economic inequalities. This book is meant to be taken place in a time after WW2, to present day. Hansberry’s writing conveys many messages hidden within the novel that not everyone may realize. For example, the role of money on the Younger family is of great importance being that they come from a life of poverty, and the role that money has on the characters varies for all the characters that were introduced to us in the first scene. In the first few pages of the novel, we are introduced to the role of money by ten-year-old Travis, when he says “Mama, this is Friday. (gleefully) Check coming tomorrow, huh” (Hansberry, pg 28). The fact that this young boy is aware of a check coming in the mail is a indication that money is scarce. In households, ten year olds generally don’t have a grasp on the importance of money, yet that is one of the first statements that Travis says. He then asks his mother, Ruth, for fifty cents for school, in which Ruth replied saying I don’t have any fifty cents to give you. Travis then goes on again to about the fifty cents wondering if he should ask his grandmother, Mama, for money, which Ruth shot down immediately, and then his father, Walter, which again she shut down. Fifty cents doesn’t seem to be a lot of money for most people, but the Youngers aren’t most people. They live in a small, crowded house where all the furniture is very worn. After Travis is done asking for the money for school he asks Ruth if he can go work at the grocery store after school, and Ruth shuts this idea down too. Again, keep in mind that Travis is a ten year old boy, which in my books is a very young age to be working, and it is clear that he has been doing it for some time now, so who really knows when he started working. Walter comes out of the bathroom and hears about what Travis wants to do and says that Ruth should let him go. Travis tells Walter that he needs to because Ruth won’t give him the fifty cents because she doesn’t have it. Walter says “What you tell the boy things like that for” and proceeds to give him the fifty cents and then an extra fifty cents to splurge on himself by either taking a taxi to school or buy some fruit (Hansberry, pg 31). In this scene we maybe get the feel that money isn’t as scarce as its being played off to be, but this isn’t the case because when Walter goes to leave for work, he realizes that he doesn’t have enough money and has to ask Ruth for fifty cents. In the novel Walter is shown to be very driven by money, it seems to be almost all he cares about. Before Walter had left to go to work, he an Ruth talked about an idea of Walters to open a liquor store with two of his other friends and needs to produce a downpayment of ten-thousand dollars, and he wants Ruth to talk to Mama about it, because that check that Travis had previously mentioned is actually belonging to Mama. Walter knows Mama wont listen to him as well as she would to Ruth. After their conversation the character Beneatha, Walters sister, is introduced. Beneatha is a strange character, because the whole novel seems to show how poor the family is, but Beneatha seems to be the one of only one who isn’t driven by money. Again the check is brought up when Walter tells Beneatha that the check is coming tomorrow, and Beneatha says that its Mamas money and she can do whatever she wants with it. Beneatha reassures herself as someone to be carefree of money, which I find this ironic because she seems to be spending the most of it. She is in college, and wants to go to medical school to be a doctor which means around eight years of school, and that type of schooling isn’t cheap. We then find out that she wants to take guitar lessons, in which Mama and Ruth question her because the year before she was taking acting lessons, and then before that she was taking horseback riding lessons, in which she apparently lost interest in all. These lessons most likely cost money and the family is clearly not well off enough for someone to be changing their mind about their hobbies. We also learn that Beneatha has been getting to know a man called George, and he is said to be a very wealthy man. Ruth believes that she should marry this man because of this fact and thinks that Beneatha is weird for not wanting to be with him for the money, reassuring that Beneatha isn’t money driven. Beneatha makes herself out to not have a care in the world about money, but she seems to be spending the most. Finally when Mama is introduced, we learn the amount the check is for, ten-thousand dollars, and why she’s getting this check, life insurance on her husband. Remember that Walter needs ten-thousand just for his deposit on the liquor store, and we don’t know if Walter has any money saved, so we would assume that Walter would need all the money. Mama states that she intends to lay out some money for Beneatha’s schooling, showing again that Beneatha is spending money, and that she wants no part in the idea of owning a liquor store and that Walter is no businessman. Ruth explains to Mama that no one is until they have a business, but then goes on to tell Mama that she should spend the money on herself and she should go see the world. So, we are shown that Ruth is also not entirely money driven and has the interests of everybody in her mind. Mama then throws the idea of her picking up some days to work, and it is not stated how old she is, but she is old enough to have a son in his mid-thirties, so I’d have to assume she is up there, and for her to go back to work just shows again how scarce money is for the family. Money is always going to have an important role in households, and especially for households that don’t have much. Money has a role on the family, but also has a role on the characters individually.
What character do you think is most directly influenced by the role of money?
Why do you think Beneatha’s character is not as influenced by money as the others, or if you think she is influenced by money, how?
Work cited
Hansberry, Lorraine. A Raisin in the Sun. Modern Library, 1995.
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Hi Evan,
I like how you explained Ruth’s character; however, I think we can say that Ruth’s character is money driven just in a different way. In scene two when the check finally comes, Ruth expresses how excited is for the check because they have not seen that much money. On page 68 Ruth says, “We ain’t never had none before-OPEN IT!” (Page 68). With “OPEN IT” in all capitals, Ruth is so excited about the big check. In addition, in scene one, Ruth does not admit to being money-driven but she does to be wealthy. It mentioned that she does not want to be poor, but in a way that she does not want it from anyone else. She wants to earn that money herself and not from Walter being co-owners of a liquor store. Ruth wants to save all this money so then they can eventually move out and stop depending on Mama to pay for the house.
While reading your blog post and A Rasin in the Sun I think that Beneatha’s character is not influenced by money like the others because she has a strong head on her shoulders and is very independent. While reading about how she is so set on her education and wanting to become a doctor it is apparent that the last thing on her mind right now is money. When comparing her character to Walter’s, we see how they view life and money differently. While Walter is speaking to Beneatha about the check she simply says “That money belongs to Mama, Walter, and it’s for her to decide how she wants to use it.” (Hansberry Pg 36) Beneatha seems to not be driven by the check coming in or any of the money for that matter. Later in the scene we get to know that Beneatha is getting to know a wealthy man named George, and she still doesn’t seem to be interested in the fact that he has money. Beneatha is a very busy person with a very big dream of becoming a doctor someday, and spends lots of time thinking about what she finds interest in. She is trying to learn how to play the guitar and is very busy, so the thought of money isn’t a big thought on her mind.
Hi Evan, I really liked your response and am going to answer your first question.
From the content of the book so far, Walter is most directly influenced by the role of money. Walter wants more out of life, to escape the poverty that he has always lived in, and to be socially accepted. He believes that money is the only way to solve this issue. The first example of this is when Travis was asking for fifty cents. Ruth told him that they do not have it but Walter gives him more than he asked for. He does this because he does not want Trais to know about their money problems but also because he wants Travis to be accepted into society. He believes that the key to being accepted is having money. One of the main discussions the family has surrounds the check. Walter believes that his business idea will help him make the money that he needs to get out of their lifestyle. Walter says, “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 how rich white people live” (Hansberry, pg 34). This shows that Walter feels like he has not accomplished anything in his life and that the business will allow him to accomplish this. Another example of Walter being influenced by money is shown in his conversation with Beneatha about being a doctor. Walter asks, “Have you figured out yet just exactly how much medical school is going to cost?” (Hansberry, pg 36). Instead of being proud of his sister for wanting to be a doctor, he is worried about the money aspect of it especially since the check was coming the next day. He continues on to talk about all the sacrifices that he and Ruth have given to make money in order to try to show that he deserves the chance to use the money to better his life.
Evan, I really liked your comment on how money will always play a role in any household, but especially in those who do not have a lot. I thought that was a good way to express how money has a different effect on everyone. After reading Act 1 Scene 1, I believe that Walter is most directly influenced by the role of money. You can tell just from the short amount of parts that he was in in scene 1. His family makes it out to seem like his drive for money is a negative aspect of him, but I personally do not see it that way. I think he is just driven to own his own or shared business, and is trying to get to that point with little to no money. The Youngers are living in a very small house shared with many people. I can understand why Walter would be influenced by the role of money and wanting more of it. Walter says to Ruth, “You tired, ain’t you? Tired of everything. Me, the boy, the way we live – this beat-up hole – everything. Ain’t you?” (Hansberry, 32) He is so directly influenced by the role of money because he wants a better lifestyle for his family. Walter sees that if they made more money, his wife would not be so tired of their lifestyle, and his family would not live in a “beat up hole”.
Hi Evan,
I really like Mama’s character, I feel like I can see where she is coming from. One thing I would like to point out is that Mama’s character basically experienced the Great Depression. If you look where the play takes place in 1959, it’s after the great depression. The Great depression is where money was definitely scarce and people struggled to find jobs and a place to live. This contributed to Mama’s role in the book because after her character experienced the depression, everything she gained afterwards (an apartment furniture, money etc), became very valuable in her eyes, even her children didn’t think so! I would also like to point out how Mama doesn’t trust in investing money. I feel like that also had to deal with her experiencing the great depression. The depression was caused due to the banks lending out massive amounts of loans and causing the stock market to crash. People who invested their money ended up losing it all. In “A Raisin In The Sun” by Lorraine Hansberry Mama said to Ruth “What done you girl? Walter Lee finally sold you on investing?” It shows her lack of trust when it comes to investing money.
Hi Evan,
I think that although Beneatha is less money driven than some of the other members of the family. I don’t think that this is because she isn’t influenced by it. In my opinion, Beneatha is the most influenced by money, as it is her way of cultivating her own creativity and expressing herself through hobbies (that all require money), and because her biggest dream of becoming a doctor will rely on her having a lot of money to go to medical school. In this sense, she is the most reliant on the money. However, I think the reason she seems to be the least money driven is because she knows that her family will find a way to support her. I believe that she feels her dream of becoming a doctor is better than her brother’s plan of opening a liquor store, and she also believes that Mama agrees with her, and since Mama is the one with the check coming, Beneatha is not that worried. Beneatha believes that her reasons for wanting the money are honorable, and therefore she believes she will get it, causing her to be both the most influenced by the money, but also the least worried about or driven by it.
Hi Evan, I really enjoyed your blog and thought you brought up a really good point about the characters and the influence that money has on them. However, I believe each character views money in a different way. For example Mama isn’t money driven, yes, she knows she needs it but she doesn’t trust anyone and doesn’t want to invest any money. However, Walter is more frustrated with the way he is living therefore he is more money driven. Walter is fed up and wants more in life, he works hard and feels like he doesn’t get anything in return and wants more for himself and his family. In Act 1 Walter turns to Ruth and asks “You tired, ain’t you? Tired of everything. Me, the boy, the way we live – this beat-up hole – everything. Ain’t you?” (Hansberry, 32). Mama on the other I feel is content with her life. She has gone through a lot and I feel that she has more of a positive view on life. She knows that money isn’t everything and that at the end of the day this is all she will get and mama has become more content with her life and the way she lives. Each character has a different view on the value of a dollar and I think it is going to be interesting to see how these characters will develop throughout the play based on their different opinion and views.
Hello Evan,
You did a fantastic job of touching up on how money affects different people. Money is always a problem in this play, like you said at the beginning of the play they open up with Walter Lee asking Ruth if the check is coming today. She is supposed to be getting this check due to Lena’s husband dying. This can also mean that this check is helping them stay afloat and maybe pay for the home that they have. The members of the younger family look at money in different ways, Mama, Beneatha, and ruth imagine money as a means to an end and Walter thinks of it as an end in itself. Mama wants to own a house so she sees the insurance check as a way to start her dream. Beneatha dreams of money as a way to support herself in medical school. Walter sees money as a way to increase his social standing. Walter is trying to move on from his low-paying job as a chauffeur. I’m going to end this with the quote from Act 1 Scene 2 from Mama, “oh so mow its life. Money Is life. Once upon a time freedom used to be life, now it’s money. I guess the world really does change.” After she said this Walter answered “it’s was always money mama we just didn’t know about it. ” We can break up this quote into two different parts. But one thing is that I can agree with Walter saying money is everything. When mama was younger it was about having freedom as an African American but not after it’s over they no moved to money and the importance of money. No matter what then and now money with always be a priority.
Hey Evan, I really liked your comment about money in the household and the effect it has on young Travis. He is only ten years old, yet grasps the concept of his family waiting on a very large check. When I was 10 years old, I definitely didn’t understand the concept of money on a scale that Travis did. When you are that age, your focus shouldn’t be on money or fancy things. It should be on being a kid and having fun. That being said, I can see the impact money has on the Youngers, even down to their youngest. To answer your first question, I believe that Walter is most deeply affected by money in the play and there are a few examples we can draw from. It is very clear from the first act that Walter is impatient to receive the check they have all been waiting for. This is just the first clue. As he goes on and explains to us what he plans on doing with the check, his motives become more clear. All Walter wants to do is provide for his family. He is a business man at heart and wants to bring in money through any means for his family. He wants to save his family from the reality of poverty. We can see an example of this when little Travis asks for 50 cents from Ruth. She claims that she cannot give Travis the money because they simply don’t have it. Walter then goes on to say “What you tell the boy things like that for?” (p. 11) He then gives his son the 50 cents and another 50 on top of that to treat himself. We can clearly see that Walter is trying to hide the idea that they are poor from his son to shield him from the harsh cruelty of the outside world. He is doing all he can as a father.
Personally i think Beneatha is not influenced by the money because she knows that Mama will save some for her because of her goals of wanting to be a doctor. I think Mama appericates Beneatha for having these goals and that’s why saving money for her schooling is important to both of them and is a unsaid agreement. Walter even admits this on page 37 by saying “Now ain’t that fine! You just got your mother’s interest at heart, ain’t you girl? You such a nice girl- but Mama got that money she can always take a few thousand for you through school too- can’t she?”. This conversation goes on by Beneatha fighting against Walter by admitting that she has never asked for anything, Walter then fires back by commenting that there is a difference between asking and accepting when it comes to Beneatha and Mama’s money. Although after overlooking back at Act 1 Scene 1, I would rather give the money to Beneatha, Ruth, or Travis before even giving a penny to Walter. He comes off very strong to all the members in the household and it seems that he has been relying on this money coming in for another idea that could fail. With Walter’s attitude and intensity towards getting this money I think he doesn’t appreciate what it could do for the whole family not just himself. He does get up early and work to help provide but his first thoughts of the morning was about the money and he judges Beneatha for wanting to be a doctor and get an education while he could all the money and not help the family at all if is business plan goes sideways.
Hi Evan,
I agree with your comment how money does play a big role in a household and how everyone handles it differently. One thing that I found really interesting in the play/novel A Raisin in the Sun is how Travis is aware and understands the role of money in the household and how little they do have. With Travis being young, he understands how money is scarce in his family and asks about the check that Mama is supposed to receive. This stood out to me the most because not many ten-year old’s would ask/talk about someone in their household receiving a check. When Travis asks Ruth for fifty cents for school, she quickly shuts him down. Ruth responds to Travis with “Well, I ain’t got no fifty cents this morning” and proceeds to tell Travis “I don’t care what teachers say. I ain’t got it. Eat your breakfast, Travis.” (Hansberry, pg 28). Ruth makes it very clear that they do not have the money and insists that Travis gets his mind off money.
I think that Beneatha’s character is not as influenced by money as the others in her household because she is more focused towards her education and does not want to have to worry about money. We see that Beneatha is not focused on money when we get introduced to George Murchison. It is clear that George is a wealthy man and Beneatha knows that. Ruth says to Beneatha “You mean you wouldn’t marry George Murchison if he asked you someday? That pretty, rich thing? Honey, I knew you was odd-“ and Beneatha replies back with “No I would not marry him if all I felt for him was what I feel now. Besides, George’s family wouldn’t really like it.” (Hansberry, pg 49). This shows us that Beneatha is not focused on money because she is not willing to have a relationship with a wealthy man when she does not have feelings for him.
Hi Evan,
I enjoyed your Blog post and agree with your assessment that Beneatha seems to not be as money driven in comparison to the rest. In regards to your question of who is the most motivated when it comes to money I would have to say that it is Walter. We can see that he despises the life that he is living and no longer wants to be in the situation that he is in. He says that all he has to give to Travis is “stories of how rich white people love” (Raisin In the Sun 33). It hurts him that he can’t give his son the true thing and let him live the life he believes he deserves. He also wants to improve the life of his mother as when he tells her “And tell it to me, Mama, every time we need a new pair of curtains and I have to watch you go out and work in somebody’s kitchen. Yeah, you tell me then!”(Raisin in The Sun 70) . He’s upset that His family doesn’t have the money that they need in order to live a life that he deems to be worth living, fueling his obsession with success and by extension with money
Hi Evan! I really enjoyed reading your blog post, and think you made some excellent points. I would like to answer the first question you proposed- which character do you think is most directly influenced by the role of money?
I think when taking Act 1 Scene 2 into account, it becomes very obvious that Walter is the one who is most influenced by the role of money. When the check arrives, everyone is happy and glad, but no one pressured Mama into seeing what she is going to do with it; however, when Walter gets home, it’s the first thing he mentions- Mama even says, “Can’t you people give a Christian greeting before talking about money?” Then, as they start fighting, it’s very apparent where Walter’s mind is versus Ruth and Mama. He doesn’t even care to listen to his wife and claims she does nothing for him, and is only concerned about the money his mother won’t let him have. All he talks about is wanting to invest it into a liquor store, and he keeps going on about his future. But what of the future of his family unit as a whole. If money is scarce, they shouldn’t blow it all at once, especially on an investment that may not even prove profitable. Mama, through her experience with life and survival, is insulted her son acts this way and lashes out- rightfully so. His mindset is money-hungry and selfish, at least in my opinion, and I think it’s very clear that he is the most concerned out of everyone about the money.
Hi Evan, I think your post was very well said. However one thing I would like to point out is that you said Walter seems to only care about money. While from a certain perspective it may seem as though he is only focused on money and becoming rich, there are other aspects that make up his focus on money. Walter states, “I’m thirty-five years old; I been married eleven years and I got a boy who sleeps in the living room” (Hansberry 34). This quote shows Walter’s frustration on how not having money affects their everyday life. His ten year old son cant even have his own bedroom to sleep in. This frustration and anger is what drives Walter’s motivation to find a way to make money and give his family the life they deserve. To answer your question, I do agree that Walter is the most money driven but I feel that he has good intentions behind it and is not in a selfish manner.
Hey Evan, great job on your post. I found what you said about Beneatha to be completely accurate. Beneatha acts like she is above worrying about the money. She thinks she takes the high road when arguing with her brother about what Mama’s check will go to. But at the same time out of all the family members, she is potentially costing them the most. She wants to do all of these extra activities as she says they help her find her identity. She takes up horse back riding and guitar lessons. Both of which she has barely done and used since she started them. She is living blissfully and not understanding that these things affect the entire household. Ruth calls her out at one point and says “The horseback-riding club for which she bought that fifty-five-dollar riding habit that’s been hanging in the closet ever since!” (46). Beneatha then later on will criticize Walter for losing the money. Essentially, the two siblings are no different from one another.
Several characters in Lorraine Hansberry’s novel “A Raisin in the Sun” are impacted by the role of money, but Walter Lee Younger is the most directly influenced by it. Walter’s ambitions and objectives are inextricably linked to his quest for financial success and the accumulation of money. Walter’s character is motivated by the assumption that money would provide a better life for him and his family. He longs to invest in a company opportunity that he feels would lead to financial freedom and social advancement. Walter’s financial desperation grows throughout the play as he experiences multiple setbacks and strives to get the finances required for his business enterprise. Walter’s own words summarize all of his feeling and desperation when he say to Mama, “I want so many things that they are driving me kind of crazy…Mama, look at me” (Act I, scene ii – I have the online book)