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Sexism In Lorraine Hansberry's A Raisin In The Sun

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All societies have their own problems. These can be things such as sibling rivalries, problems with people blending in, poverty, and sexism. Just as in the Younger family in A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry, these issues are common in many households even in our own society today. Despite the time period that the play is set in, these issues are present in today’s society. Hansberry shows that sibling rivalries can make people believe their sibling is not deserving of respect. When Walter is frustrated with Beneatha, he says, “Who the hell told you you had to be a doctor? ...[G]et married and be quiet” (1,1). Walter does not respect Beneatha’s ambition, and so he refuses to show any interest in hearing her views. Furthermore, late …show more content…

When Beneatha is talking about studying to become a doctor, Walter says, “Who the hell told you you had to be a doctor? [...] go be a nurse like other women – or just get married and be quiet” (1,1). Walter thinks that Beneatha is strange for doing something that mainly men do, like becoming a doctor. He thinks that she should become a nurse, like other women, or just get married “be quiet”. Later in the play, George tells how he feels to Beneatha, “You’re [...] nice-looking [...] That’s all you need, [...] forget the atmosphere. Guys aren’t going to go for the atmosphere” (2,2). George states that in his view, guys don’t care about a girl’s depth and personality, only if they’re nice looking. He doesn’t think that her being a doctor matters to whether men will like her, because they just don’t care about her profession. In today’s society, this issue is still relevant in the form of gender roles. For example, young women aren’t often pushed towards subjects such as science, instead seeing roles like scientists in the hands of men. This is shown in media, such as television, and it shows in our actual society. According to Forbes, 60% of Bachelor's degrees are given to women, only 27% of computer scientists are women with Bachelor’s degrees. These statistics show that A Raisin in the Sun’s sexism is still relevant to

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Lindner and the family, are all nearly resolved by the end of the play. The conflicts are only settled after the family members are in agreement with one another, respecting each other and their individual decisions. This new sense of harmony is displayed as Walter acknowledges Beneatha’s dream of being a doctor, and Beneatha realizes that Walter has come into his manhood, respecting his decision to stand up to Lindner and move into their house. These acknowledgments starkly contrast the dysfunctions seen before; whereas the family members were only being attentive to their own wants and needs, towards the end of Hansberry’s play, the family is able to see what its individual members need and give one another just that: each other’s

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The Younger family in Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun faces many oppositions and conflicts, but Mama, the matriarch of the family, keeps them held together. She helps them work out their issues with her wisdom that she has received through her own trials and tribulations. She can best be described as puritanical, dignified and caring woman who would do anything for her family. Hansberry separates Mama from the family through her wisdom and values, but she uses her to tie the story together. Mama’s puritanical values are the basis for how she runs the family.

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Beneatha is powerful for turning down George, an educated man with a much richer family than hers, but she is progressive for choosing her happiness over wealth. Beneatha Younger is a dynamic character with a personality fit for the twenty-first century. This monologue embodies her spirit as an opponent of stereotypes set for her, and her denial of assimilation. She clearly knows what she wants and how she’s going to get it, and this conversation with George is another step on her path to becoming a successful

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George thinks men should be smarter than women. George also makes fun of Beneatha’s heritage, by saying “ Let's face it, baby, your heritage is nothing but a bunch of raggedy-assed spirituals and some grass huts!” (1571). Even though George is also this heritage, he thinks he’s better than them because he is rich. Thi changes Beneatha by showing that George is wrong and Asgia is the guy for her.

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In Lorraine Hansberry’s play,” A Raisin in the Sun” Beneatha Younger has great dreams for her future, but there are issues such as, race, education, and gender that stand in the way. Beneatha’s dreams of finding who she really is and becoming a doctor are affected by her gender in the play. Walter says to Beneatha,“I'm interested in you. Something wrong with that?

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881 Words | 4 Pages

Overall, Beneatha wants to break racial and gender stereotypes by becoming a doctor. She seeks to find herself and create her own path. In A Raisin in the Sun, Lorraine Hansberry portrays Beneatha Younger as a woman in the 1950s who seeks to find herself in life while also making mistakes along the way. She faces gender and racial stereotypes and wants to break those standards that have been placed. It is frowned upon to do so, however, it is best to walk through

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Walter, believes Beneatha should give up on her dream of becoming a doctor. In the story, he states, ¨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...¨(Hansberry 38). Her attitude towards his response was very fitting for the situation. She is tired of his attitude toward his dream and lets him know by telling him to give up. It seems as if Walter was the reason for Beneatha 's dream to become deferred.

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Reading and Reimagining Social Life In Allan Johnson’s Privilege, Power, and Difference, Patricia Hill Collins describes the Matrix of Domination as an intersectionality between all the isms, especially racism and sexism. Collins describes this cycle of domination saying “that each form of privilege is part of a much larger system of privilege” (Johnson, 52). Work for change needs to focus on the idea of privilege in all forms and the way in which it enables people to think in relation to inequality and power. The only way to understand the matrix, is by understanding its dimensions.

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Beneatha wants to study to become a doctor, but instead Walter Lee wants to spend his family’s insurance money so he can open a liquor store with Willy and Bobo his friends and be a man. Since Walter Lee and his family were in a bad position and were very poor it was Walter Younger’s responsibility to keep the family together and he saw this a very big responsibility. He frequently complained about being a chauffeur and ridding rich people, every day when he woke up in the morning. He would always fight with his wife Ruth, Mama and his sister Beneatha. For instance (Hansberry 32-34) he says to Ruth his wife “You tired, ain’t you?

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Gender Expectations in Different Cultures “Women are supposed to cook and do house chores… Women should be responsible for raising children… Men should tell women what they should do… Men are superior than women.” Gender expectations are evident in Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun and the society in Korea. Due to their different culture and lifestyle, The Youngers, the African American family, in A Raisin in the Sun have gender expectations that are different from the those in Korea.

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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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Beneatha dreams to be a doctor, which is a male-dominated profession. She says, “I am going to be a doctor and everybody around here better understand that!” (Hansberry 33). This shows her feminist attitude in the play when Beneatha takes a largely optimistic stance when facing troubles of entering a male-dominated profession, implying that she is a ‘non-conformist’. Additionally, Beneatha refuses to “just get married and be quiet” (Hansberry 22), as her chauvinistic brother, Walter Lee, expects her to be.

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679 Words | 3 Pages

In a patriarchal society, women are encouraged to focus on their family and its well-being. Most often, women achieve this by caring for the children and the home. However, in the play A Raisin in the Sun, Lorraine Hansberry suggests that women do not have to focus on the family. Instead, they can prioritize their own well-being. Hansberry exhibits these ideas through two female characters, Ruth and Beneatha.

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His sister, Beneatha, wants to become a doctor and Walter isn't very supportive of her decision. Walter's wife, Ruth, is the recipient of the majority of Walter's anger and sexist remarks. In Act 1 Scene 1, the audience learns that Beneatha, a colored woman, wants to become a doctor and attends medical school. Beneatha and Walter begin to banter with each other about Mama’s money.

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845 Words | 4 Pages

Just within the recent decades, men and women started to fight against the gender stereotypes and started to challenge their roles in a family and in the society. The play, A Raisin in the Sun, portrays the lives of African–Americans during the 1950s. Lorraine Hansberry, a writer and a social activist, reinforced the traditional gender roles, especially female’s, by depicting how the Youngers interact and how they act in an economical struggle. Throughout the play, A Raisin in the Sun, she uses Walter Lee Younger, Ruth Younger and Lena Younger to reinforce the traditional role of fathers, wives and mothers within a family.

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