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Impact Of Greed In A Raisin In The Sun

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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 living on the south side of Chicago that was impacted by the need for money. The Younger family gets an insurance check from the death of Lena Younger’s husband that is used to buy a house in a white neighborhood, to pay for Beneatha Younger’s medical degree, and to try and start a liquor store. The $6,500 used to start the liquor store and Beneatha’s college money is stolen, but …show more content…

To begin, the reader sees the impact of greed through George Murchinson’s behavior. George always acts like he deserves to be respected because he is very rich, and members of the Younger family have pointed this out many times. His possession of money has altered his ego to where he is disliked by many people. Through this transformation, Hansberry shows the reader that greed can change people to be self-centered and despised. Another way the negative impact of greed is shown is through Willy Harris’s betrayal. Willy had an enormous amount of money, and the power of greed convinced him to steal it. Hansberry shows the audience through this betrayal that if people give in to greed, they will do awful things and can ruin people’s lives. One other way the dangerous power of greed is demonstrated through Lindner and his community 's actions. Lindner tries to use the power of greed to gain an advantage by offering money to the Youngers to get them to stay in their apartment. By Linder trying to bribe the Youngers with money, Hansberry shows the reader that greed could possibly destroy dreams if its power is not overcome. All in all, Hansberry teaches the reader about the negative power of being wealth centered by the actions of the minor characters throughout the

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