Fences Black People and Wilson - 1976 Words

Joseph Fernandez Ms. Reilly World Lit 27, January,2010 The Isolation and Alienation of Troy in Wilsons Fences August Wilsons Fences is a play about life, and an extended metaphor Wilson uses to show the crumbling relationships between Troy and Cory and Troy and Rose. Troy Maxson represents the dreams of black America in a majorly white world, a world where these dreams were not possible because of the racism and attitudes that prevailed. Troy Maxson is representative of many blacks and their attitudes and behavior...within the social flux of the late fifties, in their individual and collective struggles to hew a niche for themselves in the rocky social terrain of postwar America†¦show more content†¦And then I want you to stay on the other side...You stay on the other side of that fence until you ready for me (Wilson, 77). There is also the literal fence in the play, which Rose wants Troy to build around their yard. Troy wonders why Rose would want a fence when they have virtually nothing of value to steal. Bogumil believes that, A fence to Rose has spiritual significance, solace to comfort her during the times she must intervene in the dysfunctional relationship between her son Cory and husband Troy...(48). The beginning of Act One, Scene Two begins with Rose singing to herself, Jesus, be a fence around me every day.... (Wilson, 21). While Troy is building fences to keep people out, Rose builds a fence to keep them in, as she, dearly desires to preserve the family she has never had (Bogumil, 48). Rose herself says to Troy, ...you know I aint never wanted no half nothing in my family. My whole family is half.....Cant hardly tell whos who (Wilson, 68). Alan Nadel believes that Wilson is making a political statement with the metaphor of a fence. He sets up his argument with the assertion that. the idea of a fence is inextricable from the idea of property (86). He continues in this vein, linking property to humans, linking humans as a form of property to the days of slaveholding. He then says that one of the human ideals of freedom was in ownership; ownership of property. He states that in previous times, Race or skin color was just such a fence.Show MoreRelatedAnalysis Of Fences By Fences Essay1419 Words   |  6 PagesAllie Weeks Mrs. Hartwig English 102 30 September 2015 Wilson has drawn from his experiences as a young black American to write the play entitled Fences. Fences describes the plight of black America; to escalate their standing in society from historic slavery to successful self sustaining through their own efforts and skills. â€Å"Significant for the playwright is the connection between the unique values and traditions of African American culture and the ability of its characters to overcome theirRead MoreAnalysis Of Fences By August Wilson1656 Words   |  7 Pageswhen the people that children emulate are not the best examples society has to offer. In the play Fences Cory looks up to his dad when it comes to sports. However, by the end of the play the reader starts to notice that Troy is not the man to look up to. The plot in Fences by August Wilson is centered around an African American family that looks at the world a little differently by that I mean when Troy was young people believed blacks shouldn’t be able to do the th ings whites can. People were rudeRead MoreThe Role Of Women In Female Fences, By August Wilson1493 Words   |  6 PagesFemale Fences Fences took place in the 1950’s, during that time the role of women in the 1950 was repressive and constrictive in a lot of ways. The 1950s is often viewed as a period of conformity, when both men and women observed strict gender roles and complied with society’s expectations (Women in 1950’s). Society placed a very high significance on different expectations on behavior in public as well as at home. Women were to be homemakers, caring mothers, and to be an obedient wife to theirRead MoreSummary Of August Wilsons Fence1095 Words   |  5 Pagesplay â€Å"Fence† by August Wilson’s start from the setting part partially he was trying to show the structure of troy family. â€Å"The yard is a small dirt yard, partially fenced, except for the last scene, with a wooden sawhorse, a pile of lumber, and other fence-building equipment set off to the side. Opposite is a tree from which hangs a ball made of rags. A baseball bat leans against the tree. Two oil drums serve as garbage receptacles and sit near the house at right to complete the setting† (Wilson 2)Read MoreCharacter Analysis of Cory in The Play Fences by August Wilson1109 Words   |  5 Pagesbecause of a fear that was rooted in him nearly eight-teen years earlier. When Troy was released from prison he dreamed of playing Major League Baseball but at that time it was an impossibility because of racial dis he other primary relationship of Fences is that of Troy to his son Cory (Courtney B. Vance) - a promising 17-year-old football player being courted by a college recruiter. Troy himself was once a baseball player in the Negro Leagues - early enough to hit homers off Satchel Paige, tooRead MoreAnalysis Of August Wilson s Fences1609 Words   |  7 PagesIn 1965, August Wilson’s â€Å"Fences† was created as the fifth part of his Pittsburg Cycle of dramas of the 20th Century investigation of the evolution of black culture. The play has an abundance of symbolism and metaphors that tells the late life story of Troy Maxon and the family that surrounds him. Even from the beginning of the drama there is conflict and foreshadowing that can be attributed to his own belief that he has failed in life and that the world did not give him what he deserved. He takesRead MoreAnalysis Of August Wilson s Fence 1146 Words   |  5 PagesThe play â€Å"Fence† by August Wilsonâ€℠¢s has a connection with real world fence. â€Å"The yard is a small dirt yard, partially fenced, except for the last scene, with a wooden sawhorse, a pile of lumber, and other fence-building equipment set off to the side. The Opposite is a tree from which hangs a ball made of rags. A baseball bat leans against the tree. Two oil drums serve as garbage receptacles and sit near the house at right to complete the setting† (Wilson 2). He mentions that the fence has three partsRead MoreBaseball InFences, By August Wilson1239 Words   |  5 PagesWilson uses baseball to not only develop the character of Troy Maxson, but also to express the black community as a whole in the 50s. As Mollie Wilson O’Reilly put it in her article â€Å"Fertile Ground: August Wilson’s ‘Fences’†: â€Å"Wilson wrote about black Americans ‘reassembling’ themselves and their communities and coping with discrimination and poverty in another decade of the twent ieth century† (20). Troy is the embodiment of black American in the 50s. Myles Weber wrote, in â€Å"Rescuing the TragicRead MoreFences, By August Wilson1104 Words   |  5 PagesAfrican-Americans during the middle of the twentieth century were treated differently than those of the white population. Fences, a play by August Wilson, demonstrates the frustration of white dominance during a time when African-Americans were secluded from society. The Maxson family are the main characters of the play, showing the life they lived in their black tenement in Pittsburg in the 1950s. The setting demonstrates the drama of their struggle, frustration, rebellion, and the predicamentsRead MoreSymbolism in Fences1385 Words   |  6 PagesSymbols in Fences As we know that, â€Å"Symbolism is a literary deice in which an object, event, or action is used to suggest a meaning beyond its literal meaning† (p.1801). In the play night Mother, by Marsha Norman used the symbol of â€Å"bus† to compare Jessie life; she feel herself as if no progress in life after the age fifty years. Therefore, she compares herself with such a â€Å"Bus† which will reach in same place even after fifty years. So, ‘Bus’ symbolizes the lack of progress, sense of hopelessness