A Raisin in the Sun (7)

A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry

One initially small gesture that takes place in Raisin that transforms to have a very large impact is Mama's handing over of the financial power from herself onto Walter. By this point, throughout the book, Walter has been constantly complaining about the lack of respect and worth he feels. Mama, sensing this misunderstood discourse in his life, decides to go out on a limb and trust him with the money elicited by Big Walter's death. A portion of the conversation goes like this, "And from now on any penny that come out of it or that go in it is for you to look after. For you to decide" (Hansberry 107). Though it is a very compassionate and understanding gesture for Mama to hand the reigns to Walter, it also fairs to be a great mistake as Walter looses the fortune in an unfortunate, ill-conceived investment.

One of the immediate outcomes of this exchange between Mama and Walter is the obvious one, Walter managing to loose all of the family's security money which contained a large portion of Bennie's Medical School money. This in turn sends the family into a whirlwind of uneasy emotions. However, the more important outcome is how it leads into the eventual maturity of Walter. Walter, by making this great blunder and decreasing himself to his all-time low, is somehow able to bounce back and in a very proud moment, inform the stingy Mr. Linder that his family intends to move into their desired home whether he likes it or not. I believe that after Walter made the great mistake of loosing the money, he stepped back and looked solidly at his life and contemplated his father's life. It was then, that he realized that he was, at that point, not even half the man his father was. He saw how low he had fallen and decided it was time to grow mature and be the man that his family was in need for.