This play is centered on one main character, Troy, who plays an extreme part in the result of lives of many other characters in the play. His decisions also affect how he lived his life. This play represents the struggles and the difficulty that African Americans living in the mid-20th century had to deal. It illustrates the dreams and the dramatic affairs of Troy. (Treating people badly or unfairly because of their race) plays a great part in this play using the lens of the mental approach. From the setting to description the author used (Treating people badly or unfairly because of their race) as a helping force to display the mental downward spiral of Troy. The setting plays a big part in this play. During the 1950's African Americans …show more content…
He was often feeling discriminated; he somehow used his color as an excused for many of the situation that the met. A major example of this is when Troy feels that he wasn't recruited to play in the Major leagues because of his color but in reality he wasn't recruited because of his age. This just further shows how dislocated Troy's (serious mental disorder) is to reality. In contrast to Troy, Cory, his son is a good football player, he is even asked to be recruited because he plays so well. Troy who feels that (treating people badly or unfairly because of their race) will destroy Cory's future in sports was forceful about being against it saying he "told that boy about that football stuff" and that "the white man ain't gonna let him get nowhere with that football" (pg 425 lines 191-193). Troy was so caught up in his own mental war fighting with (treating people badly or unfairly because of their race) that he could not see the opportunity that was happening soon for Cory. Although he knew in that back of his mind that Cory had a passion to play football, his (something that you constantly think about) over the white man trying to destroy him caused him to wipe that dream away from Cory's thoughts. He went up to Cory's school and told him he can't play leaving Cory to find out at the last minute (pg 441 line
Should a neglected, discriminated, and misplaced black man living in the mid 1900s possessing a spectacular, yet unfulfilled talent for baseball be satisfied or miserable? The play Fences, written by August Wilson, answers this question by depicting the challenging journey of the main character, Troy Maxon. Troy, an exceptional baseball player during his youth, cannot break the color barrier and is kept from playing in the big leagues. That being his major life setback, Troy has a pessimistic view on the world. His attitude is unpleasant, but not without justification. Troy has a right to be angry, but to whom he takes out his anger on is questionable. He regularly gets fed up with his sons, Lyons and Cory, for no good reason. Troy disapproves of Lyons’ musical goals and Cory’s football ambitions to the point where the reader can notice Troy’s illogical way of releasing his displeasures. Frank Rich’s 1985 review of Fences in the New York Times argues that Troy’s constant anger is not irrational, but expected. Although Troy’s antagonism in misdirected, Rich is correct when he observes that Troy’s endless anger is warranted because Troy experiences an extremely difficult life, facing racism, jail, and poverty.
Throughout the play, the original definition of the term by W.E.B Dubois affects Troy’s mannerisms, as well as the actions of the entire black community. Troy’s use of hyperbole is dramatically affected because he can only “[look] at [him] self through the eyes of others” (Dubois 5). In an attempt to fill out his largeness, Troy strives to look at himself from the inside, rather than having others who “[look] on in amused contempt and pity”. (Dubois 5). The public and private struggle felt by most African-Americans, including Troy, has advanced to the point where they espouse two conflicting viewpoints at times. This has led to confusion even among blacks, mainly because they do not know why they must do this. This attempt to see himself differently also drives Troy to thumb his nose at the white establishment by proving to the “white man” that he is better than they say he is. The reader can also understand that the oppression of white man factors into Troy’s decisions when dealing with his family. Troy feels that ...
...ance of acceptance. It also contributes to the structure of the play due to the way it follows the line of discrimination and disrespect which foreshadows the rest of the play. The scene mentions a character that is an assimilationist and is then challenged by Beneatha when she refers to him as an uncle tom simply since he does not care about his African heritage. It also contributes to the overall theme of racial discrimination of how throughout the play the Younger family faces multiple issues dealing with race. The scene contributes to that because Beneatha believes that George would rather “act” like a white person than stay true to his roots. Thus the scene reveals that their relation mirrors and represents the way most African Americans have an internal and external segregation between each other due to differing perspectives that are influenced by society.
This makes Troy the antagonist in the story because he is not only hitting up against everyone in the play, but he is also hitting up against himself and ultimately making his life more complicated. The discrimination that Troy faced while playing baseball and the torment he endures as a child shaped him into one of the most dynamic characters in literary history. The central conflict is the relationship between Troy and Cory. The two of them have conflicting views about Cory’s future and, as the play goes on, this rocky relationship crumbles because Troy will not let Cory play collegiate football. The relationship becomes even more destructive when Troy admits to his relationship with Alberta and he admits Gabriel to a mental institution by accident.
Troy claimed, “I don’t want him to be like me! I want him to move as far away from my life as he can get” (1588). Even though Cory tried to explain to his adamant father that sports were becoming accepting of blacks, Troy maintained nothing had changed, even in the face of evidence. Rose tried to convince Troy on Cory’s behalf, “Times have changed from when you was young, Troy. People change. The world’s changing around you and you can’t even see it” (1589). Cory tried to remind his father there were many black baseball players such as Hank Aaron in the major leagues, however Troy maintained, “Hank Aaron ain’t nobody” (1586). Cory listed several others, but Troy could not comprehend times really had changed for the better. Eventually Troy kicked Cory out of the house for disrespecting him, and Cory gratefully left knowing while he wouldn’t play football anymore, he would still be better than his father. Troy’s pride in his worldly knowledge got in the way of Cory realizing his dreams; this caused Cory to lose all respect and love for his
As a result of Troy being unable to find a place to live or a job he started stealing to get by. Eventually the situation escalated and he murdered someone in a robbery gone wrong; this led to him being sentenced to 15 years in prison. Prison is where he found his love for baseball. He became quite good with a bat and hoped that when he got out he could play professionally. Unfortunately due to the segregation of the MLB Troy was never able to pursue that career and he is resentful of the situation his whole life.This caused him to be a very bitter person for the remainder of his life and this also caused him to shoot down the hopes and dreams of his son Corey by telling him things like “...The white man ain’t gonna let you go nowhere with that football
That all his strength was in permission or denial of events within his own household. He was fighting for control of the next generation. No matter how hard he tried to involve his son in this fence-building chore on a Saturday morning, the more the fence was an illusion for Cory. Perhaps Wilson's focus was narrowing in on the way a black man saw himself, rather than a white man's point of view. Knowing that he and other blacks at the garbage dump got no respect, Troy demanded a "SIR" from his teen-age son. There is surely a heart-breaking point in the play when Troy, trying to defend his dominance, tells his son "Who the hell says I got to like you? What law is there say I got to like you? . . .It's my job. It's my responsibility. You understand that? A Man got to take care of his family" (pp. 37-8).
... does tell the truth. He talks truthfully about his father and how he is a lot like him. He also admits that the only difference with him and his father is that he does not beat his children. Troy provided for his family. Additionally, even though he was very tough on Cory, he admitted that he was responsible for taking care of him and the rest of the family. In Act One, scene three, Troy explains to Cory why he treats him the way he does. Cory asks, “How come you ain’t never liked me?” (1346). Troy can’t admit to like his own son, so points out that he doesn’t have to like him in order to provide for him. “[…] ‘Cause it’s my duty to take care of you. I owe a responsibility to you! […] I ain’t got to like you” (1347). Deep down, somewhere in the dark abyss that is Troy’s heart, he sincerely cares about his family. He just has a very different way of articulating it.
Some say that this play is racial in that the family is black, and what the family is going through could only happen to people of that race. One prominent racial is...
life in the mid to late twentieth century and the strains of society on African Americans. Set in a small neighborhood of a big city, this play holds much conflict between a father, Troy Maxson, and his two sons, Lyons and Cory. By analyzing the sources of this conflict, one can better appreciate and understand the way the conflict contributes to the meaning of the work.
I think this play is a lot about what does race mean, and to what extent do we perform race either onstage or in life:
Alan Nadel argues that the object of the fence in August Wilson’s play, “Fences” symbolizes a great struggle between the literal and figurative definitions of humanity and blackness. The author summarizes the play and uses the character Troy to explain the characterization of black abilities, such as Troy’s baseball talents, as “metaphoric,” which does not enable Troy to play in the white leagues as the period is set during segregation (Nadel 92). The author is trying to use the characters from the play as examples of black people during the segregation years to show how people of that time considered black people not as literal entities and more like figurative caricatures. Stating that these individuals were considered to be in a kind of limbo between human and object. Nadel’s thesis is easy to spot, and is actually pointed out directly on page 88 of the text. It reads that August Wilson’s play actually investigates the position of black persons as the metaphorical “fence” between humanity and property, arguing that the effects of this situation interacts within the “context of white [America]” so that a wider range of people are able to view the internal struggles of the black community.
Racism is everywhere; it is all around us and at most times it resides within us. Racism basically refers to the characterization of people (ethnicity based) with certain distinct traits. It is a tool with which people use to distinguish themselves between each other, where some use it to purposely inflict verbal, physical or mental attacks on others while some use it to simply distinguish or differentiate from one another. It all depends on the context in which it is used. The play Fences by August Wilson, takes place during the late 1950’s through to 1965, a period of time when the fights against segregation are barely blossoming results. The main protagonist, Troy Maxson is an African American who works in the sanitation department; he is also a responsible man whose thwarted dreams make him prone to believing in self-created illusions. Wilson's most apparent intention in the play ‘Fences’, is to show how racial segregation creates social and economic gaps between African Americans and whites. Racism play a very influential role in Troy’s but more importantly it has been the force behind his actions that has seen him make biased and judgmental decisions for himself and his family. Lessons from the play intend to shed light on how racism can affect the mental and physical lives of Troy Maxson and his family.
The play “Fences”, written by August Wilson, shows a detailed interpretation about the life of a typical African-American family living in the twentieth century. Troy Maxson, the main character and the man of the house, a strict man with the family, hardworking, and at the same time a pleasure seeker. Jim Bono is Troy’s best friend from thirty odd years, a very friendly fellow who works with Troy and is really close to him. They both enjoy the company of each other every Friday on a bottle of an alcoholic beverage. Both characters are characterized based on being typical African American men living in the twentieth century. Even though Troy and Bono are very close friends, their actions and personalities sometimes conflict each other; this essay will focus on similarities and differences between the two characters to prove that even though they are close friends and acquire similarities, they still have different believes and behaviors.
First, Troy Maxwell, the main character throughout the play, shows his masculinity due to his past life troubles. Growing up, Troy led a very difficult and stressful life. He wasn’t close with his father; in fact, he was scared of him if anything. In Act 1 Scene 4, Troy tells the boys about his terrible