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Examples Of Greed In A Raisin In The Sun

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Greed. Betrayal. Mistrust. Slimy. Selfish. These are all traits that would describe Walter Lee and his actions. Walter Lee is a character from the play A Raisin in the Sun in which a black family tries to get out of poverty and go against stereotypes by trying to start over with their Grandpa’s life insurance money. A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry explores the concept that greed leads to being blinded by money and forgetting about one’s loved ones as shown by the climax of the play, the character of Walter Lee, and the effect that his actions have on the rest of his family. The Character of Walter Lee shows that greed blinding a person can cause him to forget about the ones he loves. In the play the author expresses, “Walter(doubled with laughter)’Mama you look ready to go out and chop you some cotton for sure” (28) while him and the family are all having fun and messing around. The quote proves just how happy Walter truly is with his family and how happy the family makes him. Mama also states in the …show more content…

In the play Mama exclaims, “Son...Is it gone? Son, I gave you sixty-five hundred dollars. Is it gone? All of it? Beneatha’s money too?” (29) after she finds out he just blew all of the money. This quote emphasises the discomfort and pure shock and disappointment of Mama at losing all of the money. Mama also cries in the play, "You mean your sister 's school money, you used that too?" (29) revealing her discomfort and despair in this quote shows just how upset that she is that Walter has gone and blown all of Beneatha’s money that was going to be her future on his little gamble. This indicates Walter has forgotten just how much this means to his family and that now he has put his own greed ahead of his sister’s future. Thus, the need of money making one forget his families and needs is shown through the climax of A Raisin in the

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In A Raisin in The Sun there is certainly a lot of loss to go through, as well as many different and opposing values. Walter, for example, was obsessed with being able to provide for his family and have the money to show for it. In his attempts to achieve this goal he ends up bankrupting the family and leaving them much worse off than before, all through his own selfishness and sense of pride. Walter at first wants to open a liquor store with the money left over by his late father, figuring it would be a good way to get easy money for the family, though his family are against this idea.

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1010 Words | 5 Pages

“Them houses they put up for colored in them areas way out all seem to cost twice as much as other houses. I did the best I could.” (Hansberry 2.i). This shows that Mama doesn’t care what other people in an all white neighborhood might think of her family, she only wants her family to be in a more comfortable living position. The rest of the family is afraid of what others might think of them and don’t agree with Mama’s idea of moving into the neighborhood.

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1084 Words | 5 Pages

Walter also finds it better to work for the money he has and would rather work day and night than getting a lot of money for nothing he

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When people are poor, they often have a lot of problems in their life. They struggle through every day, but they learn to appreciate everything that they have. However, when people are going through tough times, they often think that money will solve all of their problems. In “A Raisin In The Sun” by Lorraine Hansberry, she guides the audience through a black family -- impacted by the need for money -- living on the south side of Chicago. The Younger family gets Lena Younger’s dead husband’s insurance check and buys a house in a white neighborhood, and they save the remainder of the money for Beneatha’s medical degree and for starting a liquor store.

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973 Words | 4 Pages

The house Mama bought was $3,500 leaving $6,500. Mama asks Walter to take the money to the bank and put $3,000 away in a savings account for Benetha's medical school. Mama made a smaller decision to give Walter $500 more than Benetha. She felt as though, with the new baby coming, Walter and Ruth may need the money more than Benetha. The remaining $3,500 was for Walter and his family.

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811 Words | 4 Pages

In the text “A Raisin in the Sun” by Lorraine Hansberry, the author uses the writing strategy of conflict to develop the central idea of how oneself can become selfish when trying to achieve the American dream. The text shows that the central idea is selfishness because circumstances are presented where various characters fail to take into consideration others while seeking their dreams. For example, Walters says, “ Who the hell told you you had to be a doctor? If you so crazy ’bout messing round with sick people, then go be a nurse like other women-or just get married and be quiet…. ’’. This example of greed shows that the ambition to obtain a dream brings out the selfishness is true in the instance of Walter.

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225 Words | 1 Pages

Walter’s Textual Analysis Essay A Raisin in the Sun The role of money in the play, A Raisin in the Sun affects Walter greatly. Ever since he’s known Mama was getting the insurance check, he’s been spending time with his buddies, and trying to convince Mama to let him invest in a liquor store with his two friends Bobo and Willy. He gets angry in the beginning because Ruth doesn’t agree with him and hits in the face with a hard slap of reality.

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67 Words | 1 Pages

Walter Lee, Ruth’s wife and Mama’s son, felt that his dream of owning a liquor store was much more important than the others in his family. After receiving the leftover money from his father’s life insurance money, Walter decided to invest it all instead of putting it aside for Beneatha’s schooling. Beneatha wanted this money in order to pursue a good career and live the American Dream.

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705 Words | 3 Pages

In the play A Raisin in the Sun, the man in the house; Walter makes a quick decision to give insurance money to the character Willy Harris so he could buy a liquor store. As a result, his decision causes Willy Harris to take the money which causes an apathetic mood in the story and creates a loss of hope in the family. This shows Walter to be spontaneous and quick to trust. Walter has always had dreams of owning a liquor store because he thought he would make profit. He’s very passionate about his fantasy, “...You see, this little liquor store we got in mind cost seventy-five thousand and we figured the initial investment on the place be ‘bout thirty thousand, see.”(79)

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866 Words | 4 Pages

Both characters try to reach their dreams by moving their families and responsibility aside. For example, Walter Lee dreams of opening a liquor store, so to reach his dreams he took his family is money trying to act like a man but then that money was stolen by his friend Willy

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1127 Words | 5 Pages

(Act 1, Scene 1). Through the quote, it suggests that women should be ignorant about the world, and calling “baby” instead of her name shows the inferiority of the women to men. In addition, Walter is expected to be the head of the family; Mama says, “It ain’t much, but it’s all I got in the world and I’m putting it in your hands. I’m telling you to be the head of this family from now on like you supposed to be” (Act 2, Scene 2).

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916 Words | 4 Pages

The author, Lorraine Hansberry, puts in different characters to help display these themes and the correlation between money and how it affects people. In A Raisin in the Sun, there is a connection between pride and money with more than one character. She puts these specific characters in to display the themes clearly. Lorraine Hansberry puts Walter in the beginning of the story as very pride driven, never wanting to show his son or family their financial struggles. He is a hard worker, but being a chauffeur for a rich white man is difficult for him and his pride and further into the play takes a toll on his attitude, ambitions and family’s future.

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816 Words | 4 Pages

She defies the ideal life for a woman and expresses her opinion loud and clear. Beneatha throughout the play finds herself and her African American roots. Walter does not approve of Beneatha’s hopes to become a doctor he tells her, “If you so crazy ‘bout messing ‘round with sick people---then go be a nurse like other women---or just get married and be quiet. . .” (1.1.125) These social issues that the characters faced in their lives made them out to be the people that they were meant to be.

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466 Words | 2 Pages

Despite the fact that dreaming of a liquor store is shallow, Walter’s motivation to be able to support his family helps reconcile his somewhat immoral hopes. Later, Walter shows the idiocy of his plan to own a liquor store when he gets drunk. In act 2, scene 2, Walter borrows Willy Harris’s car and drives around Chicago for two days, then “just walked”, and finally “went to the Green Hat” (2.2 105). Through his actions, Walter shows that he is immature and cares more about pretending to be rich than his job that would allow him to provide for his family.

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779 Words | 4 Pages

The family starts to tear apart as Walter decides to sell the house to Mr. Lindner and take the check. Mama and Beneatha try to explain to Walter that their family, through generations, would have never thought about taking money in hard times. Beneatha then begins saying that their dream of moving to a new house is now dead, which Walter replies, “What’s the matter with you all! I didn’t make this world. It was give to me this way!

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