In Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun, the character Beneatha brings a feminist perspective to that play that was written in 1959. In the 1950s, men were expected to be the head of the household, and the sole provider, while women were expected to be the homemaker and take care of the children (Anderson). Beneatha is a twenty-year-old woman of color who decided to continue her education to become a doctor. During the 1950s, only 1.2% of women pursued a college education, and only 2% of those women were black (Anderson). Additionally, almost 0% of those women were pursuing a degree in science-related fields (Anderson). Most women were looking for a wealthy man and financial security during this time. Beneatha’s brother, Walter, even says, “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, 13). Even her brother thinks she should settle for a lower-level career because that is “like other women.” Despite everyone around her having traditional views, Beneatha’s feminist perspective continues throughout the play.
Beneatha is described as “about twenty, as slim and intense as her brother. She is not as pretty as her sister-in-law, but her lean, almost intellectual face has a handsomeness of its own.” (Hansberry, 35). The definition of handsome is (of a man) good-looking (Oxford). Beneatha’s face is described as “intellectual” and having a “handsomeness of its own.” Hansberry is giving Beneatha these masculine qualities because women were not supposed to be known for their intellectual ability and instead for their ability to apply makeup or cook a meal. Also, Hansberry says Beneatha is “as slim and intense as her brother.” Beneatha is being compared to a male rather than a female, but when she is compared to Ruth, she’s described as “not as pretty.” Her knowledge caused her to lose some of her beauty, making her more masculine because women did not need knowledge; they required beauty. Lastly, Beneatha is pursuing a degree to become a doctor. Very few women received a college education, let alone a Ph.D., during this time. The man she is seeing, George Murchinson, does not believe that she is going to be a doctor. Beneatha says, “First, I’m going to be a doctor, and George, for one, still thinks that’s pretty funny.” (Hansberry, 50). George sees becoming a doctor as a job that a man would pursue rather than a woman, and as a rich man himself, he would not understand why Beneatha would need a career at all. Many women do not seek out employment and especially careers as a doctor. However, Beneatha still wants to enroll in medical school to become a doctor.
Beneatha feminist perspective also pertains to money and the security of marriage. Beneatha is currently seeing a man, George Murchinson, who is very wealthy. Mama and Ruth bombard Beneatha with many questions about George, and Beneatha responds with, “Oh, I just mean I couldn’t ever be serious about George. He’s- he’s so shallow.” (Hansberry, 48). Beneatha is looking past the financial security that this potential marriage would bring her and is looking at the qualities that George has. She realizes he is shallow and not a man she would want to marry. Mama and Ruth find it insane that Beneatha would not marry him, at least for the financial security he would bring to her and the whole family. Beneatha grows frustrated with her family’s comments and says, “Listen, I’m going to be a doctor. I’m not worried about who I’m going to marry yet- if I ever get married.” (Hansberry, 50). Mama and Ruth are stunned by this statement because they have different viewpoints on how marriage can bring financial security to a woman and her family. Beneatha is focused on becoming a doctor and securing her career first rather than marrying a wealthy man who can financially secure her. Additionally, Mama receives a ten-thousand-dollar life insurance check, and Beneatha has not expected a penny of it, unlike her brother, Walter. In a conversation between her and Walter, Beneatha says, “That money belongs to Mama, Walter, and it’s for her to decide if she wants to buy a house or a rocket ship or just nail it up somewhere and look at it. It’s hers. Not ours- hers.” (Hansberry, 37). In this scene, Walter brings up the cost of Beneatha going to medical school. Beneatha has no desire to use her mother’s money because she knows that money is not meant for her, Ruth, Walter, or Travis but for Mama to do something she wants with it rather than using it on bills, business investments, or medical school tuition. Beneatha is confident that she will be able to afford the cost of medical school and does not want to touch her mother’s money.
- If Ruth had similar views as Beneatha, do you think that she would have still married Walter? Explain.
- Based on the views that Beneatha has, how is her idea of the “American Dream” different from the idea of it that Walter has?
Work Cited
Anderson, Barbara. “Women in College During The 1950s.” Social Change Interviews, 30 Mar. 2020, https://sites.lib.jmu.edu/sc-interviews/2020/03/30/women-in-college-during-the-1950s/.
Hansberry, Lorraine. A Raisin in the Sun. Vintage Books, 1994.
“Oxford Languages and Google – English.” Oxford Languages, https://languages.oup.com/google-dictionary-en/.
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Hi Charlotte, this was so interesting to read and think about when going through your blog post. You put great details in about Beneatha and her feminist perspective on what is going on with the world with women. When talking about this topic, there are some key points that should be mentioned on how life can be for a black women that is trying to become a doctor. As I continued to read your post, it really caught my attention when you started to talk about how her emotions hit her when there are numerous people talking about how she is not going to make it becoming a doctor. The book states ” I don’t want nothing but for you to stop acting holy’ around here. Me and Ruth done made some sacrifices for you- why can’t you do something for this family?” ( page 17) when Walter is talking to Beneatha this way, she feels some type of defeat and starts to beg for him to understand where she is coming from. This made it more appealing to me how this information is good to read and learn about even when things have changed over the years.
Hi Charlotte, your blog post did an amazing job at describing Beneatha for who she is and what she believes in. Beneatha is very independent and stands for everything that she believes in. The path that Beneatha chooses and the way she holds herself is very impressive and inspiring especially when considering the time frame that book is taking place. If Ruth had similar views as Beneatha she most definitely would not have never gotten with Walter. Beneatha made it really clear that she cares about the character of her potential man more than anything. “Oh, I just mean I couldn’t ever be serious about George. He’s- he’s so shallow.” (p.g. 48). The way Walter as been portrayed so far in the book is the opposite of what a woman with the same beliefs as Beneatha would be interested in. Beneatha is her own person and does not take any disrespect. If Ruth had the same mentality as Beneatha, she would have never had shown Walter any interest in the first place.
Hey Charlotte, I think your analysis is great and I agree that Beneatha represents a very strong and new idea for the time of feminism. Beneatha is very strong willed and is not one to settle for just anyone especially if they interfere with her goals/aspirations or her standards. We actually see that Beneatha has multiple standards that must be achieved for her to consider a man. We see this through her conversation with Mr. Asagai. When Mr. Asagai mentions feelings, Beneatha is very quick to shut him down telling him that romantic feelings are not the only requirement for a relationship. Mr. Asagai says “For a woman it should be enough.” (pg.47) Beneatha responds “I know – because that’s what it says in all the novels that men write.”(pg. 48) Here we see that not only a potential romantic connection is enough for her to consider courtship but it takes many things. She is more evolved from the idea that a woman just needs one thing for marriage but rather she is in charge of her own standards and needs them all to be fulfilled. This ties into your quote with George, her other potential interest where she does not intend to marry him despite his wealth because he is very shallow. We now see two polar instances where Beneatha has rejected a potential partner, love and wealth on their own not being what Beneatha is looking for in a potential partner but rather something more. I think that if Ruth had Beneatha’s mindset she would not stay with Walter because Beneatha is a very self empowered woman who will not allow herself to be belittled or controlled by a man similar to what Walter does to Ruth. She would not accept being spoken down to as well as she would not be willing to settle and rather look for the best opportunity for herself. All together a great argument you made!
Hi Charlotte, your blog post was super interesting and helped me to gain a greater perspective on Benetha and you really helped to display her in a good light by showing her power as an educated women and her feminist viewpoint. You did an amazing job characterizing her. For question two I believe that Beneatha’s idea of the American dream differs drastically from Walter’s idea of it. Beneatha’s idea of the American dream centers around being educated, becoming a doctor and mainly being knowledgeable. On the other hand, Walters American dream is to own a liquor store. Walters American dream shows his greed and true ignorance and displays his thirst for money and power over Beneatha’s desire for knowledge and education. In the book Beneatha states, “And forgive me for ever wanting to be anything at all!”. (Act 1, Scene 1). This quote demonstrates Beneatha’s feelings of defeat and her sadness for no one supporting her dream of being a doctor, so she sarcastically says forgive her for having these hopes.
Hey Charlotte first off wanted to say good work with your analysis it definitely got me to look at how Beneatha viewed her own self dependence differently. But as such a strong embodied character that was given such masculine appearance and character I have to wonder is Beneatha trying to be something she is not. For instance we look at when Beneatha gets a new boy in the beginning of act two and he calls her an assimilationist. So then Beneatha up takes more Nigerian culture to conform to a fake persona that she has made herself out to be. Is Beneatha less of a pioneer in her field and more of a fraud trying to convince people that she is more intelligent than she actually is to gain the respect she never had? These are just some other ways I viewed Beneatha trying to look even further past the first glance that Hansberry wants us to pick up.
I think you did a great job at explaining beneatha and who she is. I think beneatha is very strong in her ways and that she is very inspiring because of the path she is taking during that time period. I believe if Ruth had the same views as beneatha she would not get with Walter. I believe this because beneatha cares more about her future men than anything. Beneatha knows she deserves more and would not take the disrespect Walter gives. As said on page 48 “ hes-hes so shallow”. This shows that beneath a believes men should have a personality and a care for the women they marry.
Very good job Charlotte, I wanted to start off by saying I thoroughly enjoyed reading your blog post. The way you explained how Beneatha is very independent and really relies and pushes herself to get to the next step in her life. When you explained Beneatha’s emotions it really tied everything together how black women were treated in this time period with trying to become a doctor. To answer your first question I believe if Ruth did have similar views as Beneatha she wouldn’t have married Walter.The way Beneatha’s views men is she wants someone to have their life in order and she cares that they could potentially do something with their life. If Ruth had the same mindset she would not let Walter treat her so poorly and boss her around as he does. Ultimately the way you wrote this out really made this easy to read, and by tying it all together it made the questions easier to answer and understand.
Hi Charlotte, I think you did an excellent job with your blog, and I really enjoyed reading it.
You did a really good job explaining Beneatha’s feminist perspective and how independent she is and how she does not need to marry for financial stability because she wants to become a doctor. This also puts into perspective her standards on men because it shows us that if she’s not marrying for money then she wants a man that respects her and has depth, someone who is not shallow like George, “Oh, I just mean I couldn’t ever be serious about George. He’s-he’s so shallow.” I do believe that if Ruth had similar views as Beneatha that she would not have married Walter. The way Walters character acts so far in the book is the opposite of what Beneatha would look for in a man. Beneatha understands her worth and would not allow a man to control her or treat her with disrespect the way Ruth allows Walter to do.
Hi Charlotte! Many of the points that you made in your blog post I agree with. The book definitely portrays Beneatha as having more masculine qualities than the woman around her. This could definitely correlate with her aspirations which many at the time would see as untraditional. If Ruth had similar views as Beneatha I don’t think she would have married Walter. There was a point where even though Walter was being disrespectful towards Ruth she kept asking him if she could get him coffee or milk and he rudely rejected the offer. Ruth replied with, “What else can I give you, Walter Lee Younger?” (pg.88). It seems that she knows her place and accepts her role as the caretaker of the household. Based on the way that Ruth talks to Walter vs the way that Beneatha talks to George it can be concluded that Beneatha and Ruth have different ideas of what there roles should be as Woman in the 1950’s. Beneatha want’s to go against the odds while Ruth is content where she is. Though, If Ruth were to have had similar views as Beneatha I do not think she would have married Walter single handedly based on the way he speaks and treats her. Beneatha seems to care plenty about the things said about her whereas Ruth brushes it off because she knows her stance in the household and that even thought Walter does not make plenty of Money for the family, he makes enough to provide for them.
Hey Charlotte! First off i loved how you introduced all of the characters and gave context to them before explaining the situation. For example when you talked about Beneatha and her dream to be a doctor. The connection you made between a woman working in the medical field and the struggle she faces of being a black feminist woman. It makes for a good discussion to know about your characters personally. I think that Beneatha has a lot of things she doesn’t talk about with her family. She is very unhappy within the life she lives. She even states “there’s only one way to get rid of them mama, it’s to set fire to this building” (page 55) It is clear that anytime she talks about her home life, in this case she is talking about the roaches. Using something like a roach rather then a beautiful butterfly amplifies the feelings of her life at home.
Your second question also got me thinking. Beneatha is so unhappy with her life. So is Walter, but he knows he wants to use the money. She doesn’t agree with the life Walter wants but also doesn’t know what type of life is her “American dream”. Your analysis really dug deep into what is to come for the characters. The connections you made can make a lot more sense as we read the book, especially character development.