The idea of God is an extremely complex subject; what drives people to believe or not believe in him? In some households, God is a heavily enforced concept and figure in which family members seek guidance and assistance in their lives. In other homes, however, families are not required to believe in God. It is impossible to control others’ values or belief systems, so those who instill the power within themselves to say whether or not one believes in God is simply absurd. Walter Lee’s mother, Lena, who is essentially the head of the house, takes it upon herself to decide whether or not God exists. A strong faith or belief in him is completely normal, but no person can say what is real beyond the physical objects which are visible to everyone.
When Lena’s daughter, Beneatha, makes the statement that she does not accept the idea of God, Lena is absolutely infuriated, because she raised all of her children to strictly believe in God. In a way, Lena resembles the missionaries from Things Fall Apart; she tells everyone else what is “right” and that they will abide by her rules and belief system when they are in her house. The missionaries of Things Fall Apart act upon their goals in a similar manner, but instead of raising the Africans with the influence of Christianity, they simply invade and plant the seed of God in the minds of the Africans. When one acts out, though, the missionaries severely punish him or her, and Lena does so with Beneatha when she declares her disbelief in God; when Beneatha finally expresses her views in a truthful manner, Lena slaps her and has her say something along the lines of, “As long as I am in mom’s house, God still exists.” Such actions are a bit despotic.
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