Beneatha In Lorraine Hansberry's A Raisin In The Sun

Strong, ambitious, fierce. When a woman puts all her energy into acquiring a status reserved for men, it certainly is not an easy task. She must be willing to face a lot of criticism and survive through it. In A Raisin in the Sun, Lorraine Hansberry shows a 1950s determined young African American woman.

Educated, yet childlike at times, Beneatha Younger will go to great lengths to become a doctor and break a female stereotype.

Beneatha lives with the rest of her family in Chicago in the 1950s. Their apartment is overcrowded and not suitable for a family of five. Despite being poor, the Youngers have dreams, big dreams. Those dreams are reflected on Beneatha, a college student who constantly educates herself to improve her situation in life and achieve her dream, that for a black woman from a poor Chicago’s neighborhood, is nothing but easy.

Beneatha is the only family member to have attended college as the Younger family does not belong to a high social class. Nonetheless, even though they have don’t much money, the family makes many financial sacrifices in order to pay Beneatha’s education. However, instead of gracefulness, Beneatha often displays an attitude of superiority towards her family. She seems to look down on them for not knowing as much as she does. Although this might seem as selfishness, it could be considered

Beneatha dislikes people who are assimilationists, an example being her rich boyfriend. George is a black American, but contrary to Beneatha, sees no reason to admire their African heritage. He views himself as an American first and considers not to be worth it to study their ancestor’s culture. After he does not take kindly when Beneatha cut her hair short before they were about to go on a date, she chooses not to see him anymore due to his assimilationist attitudes, even it it goes against her mother and brother’s hopes of watching her marry a rich