ACT 2, SCENE ONE (Pgs 76-90)
Time: Later the same day.
At rise: RUTH is ironing again. She has the radio going. Presently BENEATHA’S bedroom door opens and RUTH’S mouth falls and she puts down the iron in fascination.
RUTH What have we got on tonight!
BENEATHA (Emerging grandly from the doorway so that we can see her thoroughly robed in the costume Asagai brought) You are looking at what a well-dressed Nigerian woman wears—(She parades for RUTH, her hair completely hidden by the headdress; she is coquettishly fanning herself with an ornate oriental fan, mistakenly more like Butterfly than any Nigerian that ever was) Isn’t it beautiful? (She promenades to the radio and, with an arrogant flourish, turns off the good loud blues that is playing) Enough of this assimilationist junk! (RUTH follows her with her eyes as she goes to the phonograph and puts on a record and turns and waits ceremoniously for the music to come up. Then, with a shout—) OCOMOGOSIAY!
(RUTH jumps. The music comes up, a lovely Nigerian melody, BENEATHA listens, enraptured, her eyes far away—“back to the past.” She begins to dance. RUTH is dumbfounded)
RUTH What kind of dance is that?
BENEATHA A folk dance.
RUTH (Pearl Bailey) What kind of folks do that, honey?
BENEATHA It’s from Nigeria. It’s a dance of welcome.
RUTH Who you welcoming?
BENEATHA The men back to the 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
20 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 WALTER’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.
What are two lines from the text that show what Walter is doing?
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 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.
60 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)
What does Beneatha think of assimilation?
What is one place where you see a change in the way that Walter is acting toward George.
What do you think causes this change?
What do you think Walter wants from George? Add a quote to back up your answer.
In line 103, Walter says to George "Bitter? Man, I’m a volcano. Bitter? Here I am a giant—surrounded by ants! Ants who can’t even understand what it is the giant is talking about."
Why does Walter us these metaphors? What is he saying about himself?
In two parts of this scene, Walter's imagination leads him to take on two very different roles.
Who does he imagine he is with Beneatha and how does that leave him feeeling?
Think about Walter's opinion about assimilation at this point in the play. (USE APE- 10 min, 100 words)
Who would Walter want to fit in with, and why?
Would Walter have more access to money and a better chance to reach his goals by assimilating?
Drag each explanation to match Walter's quote.
1. "I’m digging them drums … them drums move me! … In my heart of hearts—(He thumps his chest)—I am much warrior!"
2. "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! ... OH, DO YOU HEAR, MY BLACK BROTHERS!"
3. "Listen, man, I got some plans that could turn this city upside down. I mean think like he does. Big. Invest big, gamble big, hell, lose big if you have to, you know what I mean. It’s hard to find a man on this whole Southside who understands my kind of thinking—you dig?"
4. "Bitter? Man, I’m a volcano. Bitter? Here I am a giant—surrounded by ants! Ants who can’t even understand what it is the giant is talking about."
What do you think Lorraine Hansberry is saying about human nature when she develops the themes of assimilationism and individualism?
Finish Reading Act 2, Scene 1
Walter tells Ruth that the reason he doesn't try to be with her is that
How does Walter's mood change from the beginning of the reading to the end?
What do you notice happening between Walter and Beneatha?
What do you think is going through Walter's mind during this moment?
What does Beneatha think assimilation is?
Explains how Beneatha's character helps develop one of these themes:
- It is important to fit into the society you find yourself living in.
- It is important to be yourself, no matter what society expects.
What does George think of assimilation?
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?
80 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 this man 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 his carefully casual tweed sports jacket over cashmere V-neck sweater over soft eyelet shirt and tie, and soft slacks, finished off with white buckskin shoes) Why all you college boys wear them faggoty-looking white shoes?
RUTH Walter Lee!
(GEORGE MURCHISON ignores the remark)
WALTER (To RUTH) Well, they look crazy as hell—white shoes, cold as it is.
RUTH (Crushed) You have to excuse him—
WALTER No he don’t! Excuse me for what? What you always excusing me for! I’ll excuse myself when I needs to be excused! (A pause) They look as funny as them black knee socks Beneatha wears out of here all the time.
RUTH It’s the college style, Walter.
WALTER Style, hell. She looks like she got burnt legs or something!
RUTH Oh, Walter—
WALTER (An irritable mimic) Oh, Walter! Oh, Walter! (To MURCHISON) How’s your old man making out? I understand you all going to buy that big hotel on the Drive? (He finds a beer in the refrigerator, wanders over to MURCHISON, sipping and wiping his lips with the back of his hand, and straddling a chair backwards to talk to the other man) Shrewd move. Your old man is all right, man. (Tapping his head and half winking for emphasis) I mean he knows how to operate. I mean he thinks big, you know what I mean, I mean for a home, you know? But I think he’s kind of running out of ideas now. I’d like to talk to him. Listen, man, I got some plans that could turn this city upside down. I mean think like he does. Big. Invest big, gamble big, hell, lose big if you have to, you know what I mean. It’s hard to find a man on this whole Southside who understands my kind of thinking—you dig? (He scrutinizes MURCHISON again, drinks his beer, squints his eyes and leans in close, confidential, man to man) Me and you ought to sit down and talk sometimes, man. Man, I got me some ideas …
GEORGE (With boredom) Yeah—sometimes we’ll have to do that, Walter.
WALTER (Understanding the indifference, and offended) Yeah—well, when you get the time, man. I know you a busy little boy.
RUTH Walter, please—
WALTER (Bitterly, hurt) I know ain’t nothing in this world as busy as you colored college boys with your fraternity pins and white shoes …
100 RUTH (Covering her face with humiliation) Oh, Walter Lee—
WALTER I see you all all the time—with the books tucked under your arms—going to your (British A—a mimic) “clahsses.” And for what! What the hell you learning over there? Filling up your heads—(Counting off on his fingers)—with the sociology and the psychology—but they teaching you how to be a man? How to take over and run the world? They teaching you how to run a rubber plantation or a steel mill? Naw—just to talk proper and read books and wear them faggoty-looking white shoes …
GEORGE (Looking at him with distaste, a little above it all) You’re all wacked up with bitterness, man.
WALTER (Intently, almost quietly, between the teeth, glaring at the boy) And you—ain’t you bitter, man? Ain’t you just about had it yet? Don’t you see no stars gleaming that you can’t reach out and grab? You happy?—You contented son-of-a-bitch—you happy? You got it made? Bitter? Man, I’m a volcano. Bitter? Here I am a giant—surrounded by ants! Ants who can’t even understand what it is the giant is talking about.
RUTH (Passionately and suddenly) Oh, Walter—ain’t you with nobody!
WALTER (Violently) No! ’Cause ain’t nobody with me! Not even my own mother!
RUTH Walter, that’s a terrible thing to say!
(BENEATHA enters, dressed for the evening in a cocktail dress and earrings, hair natural)
GEORGE Well—hey—(Crosses to BENEATHA; thoughtful, with emphasis, since this is a reversal) You look great!
WALTER (Seeing his sister’s hair for the first time) What’s the matter with your head?
BENEATHA (Tired of the jokes now) I cut it off, Brother.
WALTER (Coming close to inspect it and walking around her) Well, I’ll be damned. So that’s what they mean by the African bush …
BENEATHA Ha ha. Let’s go, George.
GEORGE (Looking at her) You know something? I like it. It’s sharp. I mean it really is. (Helps her into her wrap)
RUTH Yes—I think so, too. (She goes to the mirror and starts to clutch at her hair)
WALTER Oh no! You leave yours alone, baby. You might turn out to have a pin-shaped head or something!
BENEATHA See you all later.
RUTH Have a nice time.
GEORGE Thanks. Good night. (Half out the door, he reopens it. To WALTER) Good night, Prometheus!
(BENEATHA and GEORGE exit)
Who does he imagine he is with George and how does that leave him feeling?
What does Walter think of assimilation?
Explains how Walter's character helps develop one of these themes:
- It is important to fit into the society you find yourself living in.
- It is important to be yourself, no matter what society expects.
What does Walter think George is implying by calling him "Prometheus"?
What topic does Walter mention in a line that the stage directions describe as "too bitter even for him"?
Why does Ruth offer Walter hot milk?