Lorraine Hansberry's A Raisin In The Sun

618 Words3 Pages
After the end of the civil war, the government tried many things to reconstruct America, one method being the 40 acres and a mule reform. In the reform, the government promised 40 acres of land and a mule to recently freed African Americans to help them get back on their feet. But instead of following through with their idea, the un-enslaved people acquired nothing, or if they did get land, the original owners forced them to become sharecroppers. This type of empty promise occurs in A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansbury with the character Walter. The 40 acres and a mule reform provided un-enslaved African Americans with an empty promise as it does Walter, his needs developing into a want for stability with his job, masculinity in his relationship…show more content…
Walter’s attitude towards his job is obviously one of the main problems in the play, and affects his decision in the end to give the money to Willy Harris. Walter strongly dislikes his job, and he makes that apparent to Mama in Act I when they argue about Walter leaving the house all the time. Mama starts to tell Walter about all of the blessings he has, specifically mentioning his job, when he cuts her off saying: “A job. Mama, a job? I open and close car doors all day long…Mama, that ain’t no kind of job…that ain’t nothing at all” (73). Walter obviously shows his dislike here, especially his repetition of the word, job. ‘Job’ is recited three times, just in this short quote, showing that it is one of the many problems on Walter’s mind, and affects him and his mindset frequently. This goes forward to show how important a better job really is, and how much it could change him as a person in a better way if he had one he really liked and cared about. Along with doing something he loves to do, having one would give Walter a sense that he is truly helping and providing for his family, eradicating some of his issues with masculinity and
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