Even today, we still believe working hard leads to success. But with society, the verisimilitude of American success is based on status and physical appearance.
Like in A Raisin in the Sun, everyone works hard to achieve what they dream of doing, but the problem society has with appearance hinders their effort.
In a way, Beneatha's like the Gandhi of her household, advocating for her own rights and independence. Beneatha sets herself off from the rest of her family. It's like she embraces her uniqueness and has this fiery passion to do all that she can to satisfy herself.
And take Walter, he's a chauffeur and yields to people higher in status by driving them around everywhere and treating them like gods. Even if there was a white person, being at the lowest of the low like going to the casino to gamble every day, that's preferred over someone who looks unfamiliar.
Walter is the man of the house, assuming the role of being the breadwinner to support his family. However, there's such limited opportunity for him to earn more. That's probably why he has that dream of owning a liquor store so he's able to be the lone ranger of his business and able to act independently without needing to consult anyone since he's would be at the top.
As humans, we just love to own everything and be the boss of others because of that feeling of being high in status. Honestly, society profiles people based on race, impeding the efforts of one to actually feel that accomplishment.
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