This essay examines how Beneatha Younger in Lorraine Hansberry's A Raisin in the Sun represents a woman ahead of her time. Through close reading of Act 1, Scenes 1 and 2, the paper explores how Beneatha's pursuit of a medical education, rejection of religious convention, casual dating, and interest in African heritage set her apart from the expectations placed on African-American women in the 1950s. The essay also considers family dynamics around the insurance money, Beneatha's complicated relationships with her mother Lena and suitor Asagi, and how her values more closely align with the liberated thinking of women in the latter twentieth century.
In A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry, Beneatha is the daughter of Lena Younger and the younger sister of Walter Lee, who is married to Ruth. Walter Lee and Ruth have a ten-year-old son, Travis, who often gets his way as the only grandson. Beneatha is a college student who desires to attend medical school. Though this is a poor African-American family that has just lost its breadwinner — Beneatha and Walter Lee's father, Walter Sr. — the father has died and left the family $10,000 in life insurance money. Beneatha needs money to attend medical school, while her brother wishes to invest in a liquor store. Their mother, Lena, desires to buy the family a home in a middle-class neighborhood where all the current residents are white. Beneatha will clearly be the first in the family to attend college, and she surrounds herself with educated friends. She does not share her mother's religious beliefs and openly expresses her disdain for them.
Beneatha would fit comfortably into the latter twentieth-century thinking of women who believe education is the key to earning respect and asserting independence. She is dating two students: one who is wealthy, and another, Joseph Asagi, who is quite intellectual and of African descent. Beneatha appears liberated and has broken away from the traditional role of women in the 1950s, who often worked in the homes of wealthy white families.
The scene opens with the family discussing what to do with the insurance money following the father's death. They live in an apartment on the South Side of Chicago in what is considered the ghetto. Each member of the family has plans for the money. Walter Lee wants to invest in a liquor store with a couple of friends, but Lena is firmly against this because it conflicts with her religious beliefs. She tells Walter Lee, "I don't want that on my ledger," referring to his idea as an affront to God (Hansberry, 42). Walter works as a chauffeur and believes the plan will succeed, reasoning that liquor in a poor neighborhood will bring easy profit. Ruth, Walter's wife, works as a cleaning woman and appears ill, though no one seems to notice except perhaps Lena. Ruth does not agree with her husband and regards his plan as a get-rich-quick scheme. In fact, the family calls Walter's idea a "fly by night proposition" (Hansberry, 33).
Lena appears to favor her daughter Beneatha over Walter and wants to set aside some money for college. Even so, Beneatha disrespects her mother by declaring she does not believe in God, which deeply hurts Lena, prompting her to slap her daughter. Although Beneatha clearly considers herself better educated than the other family members, the mother remains determined to support her financially. However, she does not consider Walter Lee's investment idea at all. Lena — also called Mama — shares her plan to use part of the money to purchase a house in a better neighborhood, which the family regards with uncertainty.
Money is at the forefront of everyone's thoughts in this scene. Some of the money is to be set aside for Beneatha, while Walter Lee is given nothing to invest in his dream. This dynamic is typical of twentieth-century African-American families willing to support members who pursue higher education, while those who do not pursue it are often overlooked or treated as the black sheep. This is precisely the case with Walter Lee, who is all but ignored by the women in the Younger household. The scene ends dramatically as Ruth passes out on the floor.
Beneatha does support her mother by following the household rules and doing housework. However, she can be patronizing in how she treats Lena. When expecting her African friend Asagi to visit, Beneatha schools her mother in African culture so that Lena will not be embarrassed. The two do care deeply for each other, yet Beneatha is not as emotionally invested in the relationship as her suitor. Asagi does not fully accept her attitude and says that "liberated women are not liberated at all" (Hansberry, 64). He is very proud of his heritage and teases Beneatha for straightening her naturally curly hair to achieve a more European look. He brings her a gift of authentic Nigerian clothing. Beneatha is pleased with the gift and eager to learn more about African history. She told him when they first met, "Mr. Asagi, I am looking for my identity" (Hansberry, 62). Asagi is from Nigeria, is attending college, and is articulate and knowledgeable about the royal lineage of African tribal history. Having lived on two continents, he is experienced in both Western culture and his own African roots. Yet he expects Beneatha to accept his values, which place the man as the head of the relationship and the woman as someone who willingly follows his direction.
"Asagi visit reveals Beneatha's identity search and generational divide"
Hansberry, Lorraine. A Raisin in the Sun. Ed. Robert Nemiroff. Random House: New York, 1958.
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