Dreams are vital to the life of every person. Without dreams, there is nothing
to plan or look forward to. The Younger family in A Raisin In The Sun by
Lorraine Hansberry has many dreams for their future that a $10,000 insurance
check guarantees them. I also have dreams and hopes for my future, college, a
job, and a family are all things that I want to have, some day. Due to Walter
Younger’s death, his widow, Lena Younger, receives a $10,000 insurance check.
Lena’s dream is to own her own two story house. She takes the money and uses
some of it to put a down payment on a nice little house in an all white
neighborhood. This causes some problems and conflicts, but in the end, Lena’s
dream is fulfilled and she gets the home that she and her deceased husband
always wanted. Her son, Walter Younger Jr., also has great plans for that money,
even though it isn’t really his. He invested into buying a liquor store with
two acquaintances. Lena let him have $3,500 to do what he like with and another
$3,000 to put in a savings account for his sister. Instead, he puts all of it
into the liquor store. Then, he discovers that one of his “buddies” took off
with the money, all of it. His dream of providing a better life for his family
is shattered. Lena also plans to help her daughter, Beneatha, get an education
so that she can fulfill her dream of becoming a doctor. Bennie’s dream is not
really taken seriously by anyone since black doctors were unheard of, much less
a female one. Still, her mother believed in her and supported her by giving
Bennie $3,000 of her check by way of having Walter Jr. put it in the bank for
her. Unfortunately, he put it all into his dream instead and lost her future
along with his.