A Raisin in the Sun (5)

A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry

One big issue that resonates through this play is the generation gap that exits between Mama and the younger characters of the family, specifically Beneatha. There are many differences that exist between Mama and Beneatha that are there because of the impact of the period they live in. Mama was a little girl in a time just after the emancipation proclamation. Therefore she grew up in a time while black's were just moving to their feet and many of the adults in her life and lived through slavery. Because of this, Mama has a major proclivity to a simple life, without a craving for money and power. She says to Walter on the subject of money, "Once upon a time freedom used to be life- now it's money. I guess the world really do change..." (Hansberry 74). While she may be content with just freedom, now Beneatha has grown up with just freedom and has her own goals that she must attain, intelligence and a civil role in the new world. She differ's from Mama greatly in her own education and her worldly and philosophical approach to life. Mama believes in God, family, and morals, while Beneatha is geared toward knowledge, cosmopolitism, and revolution. As well, much of the contention that comes between the generations is the cynical outlook that often accompanies educated realists and Beneatha's disbelief of God.