Free A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry Page A
Authors: Lorraine Hansberry
village.
RUTH Where they been?
BENEATHA How should I know—out hunting or something. Anyway, they are coming back now …
RUTH Well, that’s good.
BENEATHA (
With the record
)
Alundi, alundi
Alundi alunya
Jop pu a jeepua
Ang gu soooooooooo
Ai yai yae …
Ayehaye—alundi …
( WALTER
comes in during this performance; he has obviously been drinking. He leans against the door heavily and watches his sister, at first with distaste. Then his eyes look off—“back to the past”—as he lifts both his fists to the roof, screaming
)
WALTER YEAH … AND ETHIOPIA STRETCH FORTH HER HANDS AGAIN! …
RUTH (
Drily, looking at him
) Yes—and Africa sure is claiming her own tonight. (
She gives them both up and starts ironing again
)
WALTER (
All in a drunken, dramatic shout
) Shut up! … I’m digging them drums … them drums move
me! … (He makes his weaving way to his wife’s face and leans in close to her
) In my
heart of hearts—(He thumps his chest
)—I am much warrior!
RUTH (
Without even looking up
) In your heart of hearts you are much drunkard.
WALTER (
Coming away from her and starting to wander around the room, shouting
) Me and Jomo … (
Intently, in his sister’s face. She has stopped dancing to watch him in this unknown mood
) That’s my man, Kenyatta. (
Shouting and thumping his chest
) FLAMING SPEAR! HOT DAMN! (
He is suddenly in possession of an imaginary spear and actively spearing enemies all over the room) OCOMOGOSIAY …
BENEATHA (
To encourage
WALTER ,
thoroughly caught up with this side of him) OCOMOGOSIAY
, FLAMING SPEAR!
WALTER THE LION IS WAKING … OWIMOWEH! (
He pulls his shirt open and leaps up on the table and gestures with his spear
)
BENEATHA OWIMOWEH!
WALTER (
On the table, very far gone, his eyes pure glass sheets. He sees what we cannot, that he is a leader of his people, a great chief, a descendant of Chaka, and that the hour to march has come
) Listen, my black brothers—
BENEATHA OCOMOGOSIAY!
WALTER —Do you hear the waters rushing against the shores of the coastlands—
BENEATHA OCOMOGOSIAY!
WALTER —Do you hear the screeching of the cocks in yonder hills beyond where the chiefs meet in council for the coming of the mighty war—
BENEATHA OCOMOGOSIAY!
(
And now the lighting shifts subtly to suggest the world of
W ALTER’S
imagination, and the mood shifts from pure comedy. It is the inner
WALTER
speaking: the Southside chauffeur has assumed an unexpected majesty
)
WALTER —Do you hear the beating of the wings of the birds flying low over the mountains and the low places of our land—
BENEATHA OCOMOGOSIAY!
WALTER —Do you hear the singing of the women, singing the war songs of our fathers to the babies in the great houses? Singing the sweet war songs! (
The doorbell rings
) OH, DO YOU HEAR, MY BLACK BROTHERS!
BENEATHA (
Completely gone
) We hear you, Flaming Spear—
( RUTH
shuts off the phonograph and opens the door
. GEORGE MURCHISON
enters
)
WALTER Telling us to prepare for the GREATNESS OF THE TIME! (
Lights back to normal. He turns and sees
GEORGE ) Black Brother!
(
He extends his hand for the fraternal clasp
)
GEORGE Black Brother, hell!
RUTH (
Having had enough, and embarrassed for the family
) Beneatha, you got company—what’s the matter with you? Walter Lee Younger, get down off that table and stop acting like a fool …
( WALTER
comes down off the table suddenly and makes a quick exit to the bathroom
)
RUTH He’s had a little to drink … I don’t know what her excuse is.
GEORGE (
To
BENEATHA ) Look honey, we’re going
to
the theatre—we’re not going to be
in
it … so go change, huh?
( BENEATHA
looks at him and slowly, ceremoniously, lifts her hands and pulls off the headdress. Her hair is close-cropped and unstraightened
. GEORGE
freezes mid-sentence and
RUTH’S
eyes all but fan out of her head
)
GEORGE What in the name of—
RUTH (
Touching
BENEATHA’S
hair
) Girl, you done lost your
RUTH Where they been?
BENEATHA How should I know—out hunting or something. Anyway, they are coming back now …
RUTH Well, that’s good.
BENEATHA (
With the record
)
Alundi, alundi
Alundi alunya
Jop pu a jeepua
Ang gu soooooooooo
Ai yai yae …
Ayehaye—alundi …
( WALTER
comes in during this performance; he has obviously been drinking. He leans against the door heavily and watches his sister, at first with distaste. Then his eyes look off—“back to the past”—as he lifts both his fists to the roof, screaming
)
WALTER YEAH … AND ETHIOPIA STRETCH FORTH HER HANDS AGAIN! …
RUTH (
Drily, looking at him
) Yes—and Africa sure is claiming her own tonight. (
She gives them both up and starts ironing again
)
WALTER (
All in a drunken, dramatic shout
) Shut up! … I’m digging them drums … them drums move
me! … (He makes his weaving way to his wife’s face and leans in close to her
) In my
heart of hearts—(He thumps his chest
)—I am much warrior!
RUTH (
Without even looking up
) In your heart of hearts you are much drunkard.
WALTER (
Coming away from her and starting to wander around the room, shouting
) Me and Jomo … (
Intently, in his sister’s face. She has stopped dancing to watch him in this unknown mood
) That’s my man, Kenyatta. (
Shouting and thumping his chest
) FLAMING SPEAR! HOT DAMN! (
He is suddenly in possession of an imaginary spear and actively spearing enemies all over the room) OCOMOGOSIAY …
BENEATHA (
To encourage
WALTER ,
thoroughly caught up with this side of him) OCOMOGOSIAY
, FLAMING SPEAR!
WALTER THE LION IS WAKING … OWIMOWEH! (
He pulls his shirt open and leaps up on the table and gestures with his spear
)
BENEATHA OWIMOWEH!
WALTER (
On the table, very far gone, his eyes pure glass sheets. He sees what we cannot, that he is a leader of his people, a great chief, a descendant of Chaka, and that the hour to march has come
) Listen, my black brothers—
BENEATHA OCOMOGOSIAY!
WALTER —Do you hear the waters rushing against the shores of the coastlands—
BENEATHA OCOMOGOSIAY!
WALTER —Do you hear the screeching of the cocks in yonder hills beyond where the chiefs meet in council for the coming of the mighty war—
BENEATHA OCOMOGOSIAY!
(
And now the lighting shifts subtly to suggest the world of
W ALTER’S
imagination, and the mood shifts from pure comedy. It is the inner
WALTER
speaking: the Southside chauffeur has assumed an unexpected majesty
)
WALTER —Do you hear the beating of the wings of the birds flying low over the mountains and the low places of our land—
BENEATHA OCOMOGOSIAY!
WALTER —Do you hear the singing of the women, singing the war songs of our fathers to the babies in the great houses? Singing the sweet war songs! (
The doorbell rings
) OH, DO YOU HEAR, MY BLACK BROTHERS!
BENEATHA (
Completely gone
) We hear you, Flaming Spear—
( RUTH
shuts off the phonograph and opens the door
. GEORGE MURCHISON
enters
)
WALTER Telling us to prepare for the GREATNESS OF THE TIME! (
Lights back to normal. He turns and sees
GEORGE ) Black Brother!
(
He extends his hand for the fraternal clasp
)
GEORGE Black Brother, hell!
RUTH (
Having had enough, and embarrassed for the family
) Beneatha, you got company—what’s the matter with you? Walter Lee Younger, get down off that table and stop acting like a fool …
( WALTER
comes down off the table suddenly and makes a quick exit to the bathroom
)
RUTH He’s had a little to drink … I don’t know what her excuse is.
GEORGE (
To
BENEATHA ) Look honey, we’re going
to
the theatre—we’re not going to be
in
it … so go change, huh?
( BENEATHA
looks at him and slowly, ceremoniously, lifts her hands and pulls off the headdress. Her hair is close-cropped and unstraightened
. GEORGE
freezes mid-sentence and
RUTH’S
eyes all but fan out of her head
)
GEORGE What in the name of—
RUTH (
Touching
BENEATHA’S
hair
) Girl, you done lost your