A Raisin In The Sun American Dream Analysis Essay

The end of World War II brought upon the burgeoning concept of the ‘American Dream’, a dream in which being middle class was attainable, as was having your own picture-perfect nuclear family. However, were these dreams even attainable for most people, and did these ideals make you any happier? Lorraine Hansberry juggles what the American dream means to a Black working-class family living in Chicago in her play, A Raisin in the Sun. The play grapples with the intersectionality of race, gender, and class; there is also an underlying theme of alienation, especially as it pertains to race.

Before we delve into these concepts, we must understand why the setting of the play is so poignant to what Hansberry is trying to communicate with her audience. America, post World War II, boomed both in terms of upward mobility and overall economic growth. However, a lesser discussed expansion is that of racial tensions, especially between White and Black Americans. Leah Platt Boustan discusses the ongoing racial tensions during this time and how it spilled out into human migration patterns with, Black Migration, White Flight. Boustan states, “By remaining in the cities, whites had to vote in municipal elections and send their children to public schools with black newcomers [...] the suburbs may have been attractive not only for their homogeneity but for their political autonomy” (Boustan 2). Residing in the suburbs during this era was the hallmark that suggested one had attained middle class status. However, Boustan points out that these suburbs reveal a more insidious truth, that they were built to maintain White privileges. In the play this issue is apparent with the Youngers trying to move into a White majority neighborhood only for these residents to try and buy them out as a means to push them back into the city. This migration issue did not only affect the segregation many Black Americans faced but also the poor economic opportunities they could work with. In her documentation Boustan states that according to her estimates, “a flow of black southern migration large enough to increase labor supply by 5 percent (the mean across all skill groups) would have reduced the annual earnings of existing black workers by 3-5 percent, but would have no effect on similarly skilled whites” (Boustan 3).

Now that it has been fundamentally established that the condition for Black Americans post World War II made it difficult for them to achieve a decent quality of life, let us understand how these economic issues as well as racial issues impacted women. In “Race, Gender, Class Intersectionality” author’s Jean Ait Belkhir and Bernice McNair Barnett discuss the unique experience that Black women have in capitalist societies. Belkhair and Barnett assert that, “women and women’s labor power are exploited for the benefit of men and of the capitalist economic order, both in the home (doing housework and childbearing) and outside the home” (Belkhir and Barnett 169). This is evident with the characterization of Ruth Younger; we see this evidence in this interaction with Walter, where he complains, “That is just what is wrong with the colored woman in this world [...] Don’t understand about building their men up and making ’em feel like they somebody” (Hansberry pg. 37). Ruth’s entire existence is built to sacrifice emotional labor, especially on her own husband who seldom returns this favor. Walter's reference to Ruth as a “colored woman” reveals the exploitative nature of this relationship as he does not even call his own wife by her name. In the article “Multiple Jeopardy, Multiple Consciousness”, Deborah K. King implores audiences to understand the discrimination Black women face from systemic and cultural institutions. King argues that, “And when black women become the primary or sole earners for households, researchers and public analysts interpret this self-sufficiency as pathology, as deviance, as a threat to black family life” (King 9). Throughout the play, Beneatha wants to use their newfound money to invest in becoming a doctor, a desire that her family members mock. Walter tells Beneatha, “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 41). The first important idea to note, is that Walter throughout the play acts as the head patriarch of the Younger family and his existence in the family is connected to oppressing or diminishing the accomplishment of women in the family, as we can visibly see in this comment. Moreover, his telling Beneatha to adopt a less paying job or “just get married” establishes his fear of his sister, a woman out-earning him which would change the family dynamics that have always benefited him.

It is axiomatic that women, especially lower-class women of color, are susceptible to oppression; however, what is rarely discussed is how masculinity can be hurtful, especially to men of color. This is because black masculinity has to operate under the thin confines of American ideals. Ed Guerro delves into how masculinity can be harmful and how Black masculinity is portrayed in mainstream media with his article, “The Black Man on Our Screens and the Empty Space in Representation”. Guerro states that, “a culture that defines ‘manhood’ by the ability to provide economic survival for one’s self and family – in this culture, the very means of achieving ‘manhood’ are systematically and institutionally kept out of the grasp of all too many black men” (Guerro 3). This is a core struggle for Walter as he views the pinnacle of masculinity to be the necessity that he asserts his dominance not only in the domestic sphere but also in an economic sphere. There is one moment in particular where frustrated with Ruth, he comments, “His woman say: Eat your eggs and go to work [...] Man say: I got change my life, I'm choking to death, baby!” (Hansberry 37). What is fascinating to notice in this interaction, is that Walter feels possession towards his “woman”, who serves to fulfill his domestic needs while “man” is obligated to change the economic situation in his family’s life. Walter’s “I’m choking to death baby” signifies that he finds the concept of being a low-ranking worker emasculating or slowly killing him, which feeds into the ideal that his ‘manhood’ is diminishing as work he finds pleasing or traditionally masculine is most likely out of his grasp due to racial discrimination. Guerro also delves into the concept of, “as the black Other, marked and relentlessly locked out of the American Dream, and simultaneously as the Being beyond the stigma of Otherness” (Guerro 5). It is interesting to explore how Joseph Asagai embodies this concept of “Otherness” due to his Nigerian heritage. When Beneatha states she desires to marry him, Walter responds, “You better marry a man with some loot” (Hansberry 149). Joseph is locked out of the American Dream of achieving marital status with the woman he loves due to the implication of African culture being “other” and the concept that masculinity is rooted in being financially successful. Additionally, Walter's response proves that he does not believe in Joseph to be ‘man’ enough to establish a family with Beneatha.

The notion that you must fulfill certain expectations or face discrimination based off of your gender and race can be duanting; incorporating these concepts with alienation can exacerbate feelings of dehumanization. Although alienation occurs on multiple levels throughout this play, in this paragraph I would like to establish how alienation occurs in both the self and each other. In “Marx’s Theory of Alienation” author Gajo Petrovic explains, “Thus the alienation of man from himself manifests itself as the alienation of man from man” (Petrovic 3). This concept is apparent in disagreements with who the insurance money belongs to. We see this as Beneatha argues, “but the insurance money belongs to Mama” (Hansberry 41). This causes Walter to respond, “The world’s most backward race of people, and that’s a fact” (Hansberry 41). This interaction shows the slow disintegration of the relationship between family members and Walter’s response of “most backward race of people” suggest his own estrangement from his identity.