A Raisin in the Sun

by Lorraine Hansberry

Big Walter used to say, he’d get right wet in the eyes sometimes, lean his head back with the water standing in his eyes and say, “Seem like God didn’t see fit to give the black man nothing but dreams—but He did give us children to make them dreams seem worth while.” (She smiles) He could talk like that, don’t you know.

MAMA (Presently) Well – (Tightly) Well — son, I’m waiting to hear you say something … (She waits) I’m waiting to hear how you be your father’s son. Be the man he was … (Pause. The silence shouts) Your wife say she going to destroy your child. And I’m waiting to hear you talk like him and say we a people who give children life, not who destroys them—(She rises) I’m waiting to see you stand up and look like your daddy and say we done give up one baby to poverty and that we ain’t going to give up nary another one … I’m waiting.

GEORGE Oh, don’t be so proud of yourself, Bennie—just because you look eccentric. BENEATHA How can something that’s natural be eccentric? GEORGE That’s what being eccentric means—being natural. Get dressed. BENEATHA I don’t like that, George. RUTH Why must you and your brother make an argument out of everything people say? BENEATHA Because I hate assimilationist Negroes!

RUTH Will somebody please tell me what assimila-who ever means! GEORGE Oh, it’s just a college girl’s way of calling people Uncle Toms—but that isn’t what it means at all. RUTH Well, what does it mean? BENEATHA (Cutting GEORGE off and staring at him as she replies to RUTH) It means someone who is willing to give up his own culture and submerge himself completely in the dominant, and in this case oppressive culture!

BENEATHA GRASS HUTS! (RUTH crosses to her and forcibly pushes her toward the bedroom) See there … you are standing there in your splendid ignorance talking about people who were the first to smelt iron on the face of the earth! (RUTH is pushing her through the door) The Ashanti were performing surgical operations when the English—(RUTH pulls the door to, with BENEATHA on the other side, and smiles graciously at GEORGE. BENEATHA opens the door and shouts the end of the sentence defiantly at GEORGE)—were still tattooing themselves with blue dragons! (She goes back inside)

WALTER Why? You want to know why? ’Cause we all tied up in a race of people that don’t know how to do nothing but moan, pray and have babies!