Free A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry Page B

natural mind!? Look at your head!
    GEORGE What have you done to your head—I mean your hair!
    BENEATHA Nothing—except cut it off.
    RUTH Now that’s the truth—it’s what ain’t been done to it! You expect this boy to go out with you with your head all nappy like that?
    BENEATHA (
Looking at
GEORGE ) That’s up to George. If he’s ashamed of his heritage—
    GEORGE Oh, don’t be so proud of yourself, Bennie—just because you look eccentric.
    BENEATHA How can something that’s natural be eccentric?
    GEORGE That’s what being eccentric means—being natural. Get dressed.
    BENEATHA I don’t like that, George.
    RUTH Why must you and your brother make an argument out of everything people say?
    BENEATHA Because I hate assimilationist Negroes!
    RUTH Will somebody please tell me what assimila-who ever means!
    GEORGE Oh, it’s just a college girl’s way of calling people Uncle Toms—but that isn’t what it means at all.
    RUTH Well, what does it mean?
    BENEATHA (
Cutting
GEORGE
off and staring at him as she replies to
RUTH ) It means someone who is willing to give up his own culture and submerge himself completely in the dominant, and in this case
oppressive
culture!
    GEORGE Oh, dear, dear, dear! Here we go! A lecture on the African past! On our Great West African Heritage! In one second we will hear all about the great Ashanti empires; the great Songhay civilizations; and the great sculpture of Bénin—and then some poetry in the Bantu— and the whole monologue will end with the word
heritage! (Nastily
) Let’s face it, baby, your heritage is nothing but a bunch of raggedy-assed spirituals and some grass huts!
    BENEATHA GRASS HUTS! ( RUTH
crosses to her and forcibly pushes her toward the bedroom
) See there … you are standing there in your splendid ignorance talking about people who were the first to smelt iron on the face of the earth! ( RUTH
is pushing her through the door
) The Ashanti were performing surgical operations when the English—( RUTH
pulls the door to, with
BENEATHA
on the other side, and smiles graciously at
GEORGE. BENEATHA
opens the door and shouts the end of the sentence defiantly at
GEORGE )—were still tattooing themselves with blue dragons! (
She goes back inside
)
    RUTH Have a seat, George (
They both sit
. RUTH
folds her hands rather primly on her lap, determined to demonstrate the civilization of the family
) Warm, ain’t it? I mean for September. (
Pause
) Just like they always say about Chicago weather: If it’s too hot or cold for you, just wait a minute and it’ll change. (
She smiles happily at this cliché of clichés
) Everybody say it’s got to do with them bombs and things they keep setting off. (
Pause
) Would you like a nice cold beer?
    GEORGE No, thank you. I don’t care for beer. (
He looks at his watch
) I hope she hurries up.
    RUTH What time is the show?
    GEORGE It’s an eight-thirty curtain. That’s just Chicago, though. In New York standard curtain time is eight forty.
    (
He is rather proud of this knowledge
)
    RUTH (
Properly appreciating it
) You get to New York a lot?
    GEORGE (
Offhand
) Few times a year.
    RUTH Oh—that’s nice. I’ve never been to New York. ( WALTER
enters. We feel he has relieved himself, but the edge of unreality is still with him
)
    WALTER New York ain’t got nothing Chicago ain’t. Just a bunch of hustling people all squeezed up together—being “Eastern.”
    (
He turns his face into a screw of displeasure
)
    GEORGE Oh—you’ve been?
    WALTER
Plenty
of times.
    RUTH (
Shocked at the lie
) Walter Lee Younger!
    WALTER (
Staring her down
) Plenty! (
Pause
) What we got to drink in this house? Why don’t you offer thisman some refreshment. (
To
GEORGE ) They don’t know how to entertain people in this house, man.
    GEORGE Thank you—I don’t really care for anything.
    WALTER (
Feeling his head; sobriety coming
) Where’s Mama?
    RUTH She ain’t come back yet.
    WALTER (
Looking
MURCHISON
over from head to toe, scrutinizing