Meet the Youngers!

A Raisin in the Sun
Lorraine Hansberry

The Youngers are an African-American value built on simple values and hard work living in the Southside of Chicago. The mother of the Family, Mama, would be considered someone who wondered what happened. She raised a family in a dinky apartment that she expected to move out of within a year. Time went by, and soon enough she became a grandmother in that very same home. Her son, Walter, was a man who was tired of his way a life, and wanted to be a man who would make things happen. Walter went about "making things happen" in all the wrong ways. Instead of aiming at getting a better job and/or working harder, he planned to get rich quick by buying a selling a liquor store. He had the mindset to turn his life around, but his execution was poor. His wife, Ruth, knew this and was against it, but faithfully watched him and their family go through life in their apartment. Through indirect characterization, the author reveals that Ruth has resentment towards her own home, but is willing to deal with her emotions in order to at least have a secure home to live in. She even concedes that the house has greater value by stating “Lord knows, we’ve put enough rent into this here rat trap to pay for four houses by now…” (Hansberry 452). The quote shows the effort put into the home, but how it still is a worthless shack of a home in Ruth's watchful eyes.