Analysis: The Piano Lesson by August Wilson

1745 Words4 Pages

August Wilson’s The Piano Lesson, tells a story of a family haunted by the pain of their past and their struggle to find peace to move forward. The story begins with character Boy Willie coming up from the south visiting his sister Bernice. Boy Willie introduces the idea of selling the family’s heirloom, a piano, to raise enough money to buy the land on which his ancestors were enslaved. However, both Boy Willie and his sister Berniece own half a half of the piano and she refuses to let Boy Willie sell it. Through the use of symbolism, Wilson uses his characters, the piano and the family’s situation to provide his intended audience with the lesson of exorcising our past in order to move forward in our lives. Our past will always be a part of our lives, but it does not limit or determine where we can go, what we can do, or who we can become.
The piano held symbolic significance in the story of the family and their struggle to move forward. The piano represents the importance and value of slaves during slavery. Slaves were traded for objects during slavery. Slaves were of no importance to their slave owners. As Doaker says in the story “now she had her piano and her niggas too”, meaning slaves were nothing more than an accessory to their slave owners (Wilson 395). Doaker sarcastically speaks of how slaves were not considered humans but property. As Sandy Alexandre states in her work, “Property and Inheritance in August Wilson’s The Piano Lesson”, “Doaker sees greed where there should be something like repulsion or at least a semblance of hesitation to accept such an ill-begotten gift”(77). Alexandre argues slaves are not given the proper respect and are not considered equal. This specific event from the story shows how little to ...

... middle of paper ...

...nt. Knowing where you come from and making use of your history is an important part of accepting who you are.

Works Cited

Alexandre, Sandy. ""The Things What Happened with Our Family":Property and Inheritance in August Wilson's The Piano Lesson." Project MUSE. Modern Drama, Spring 2009. Web. 28 Apr. 2014.
Chen, Meng-fei. Reconstructing Black Identities in August Wilson's The Piano Lesson. Thesis. National Chengchi University, 2002. NCCU Institutional Repository. Web. 28, Apr. 2014.
Marable, Ingrid A. The Women of August Wilson and a Performance Study and Analysis. Thesis. University of Central Florida, 2009. Web.28 Apr. 2014.
Wen, Hui Ying. Thesis. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2005. MIT OpenCourseWare. Web. 28 Apr. 2014.
Wilson, August. "The Piano Lesson." Drama: A Pocket Anthology. Ed. R. S. Gwynn. 5th ed. New York: Pearson, 2012. 362-442. Print.

Show More
Related

  • Mary Surratt: An American Secret

    1804 Words  | 4 Pages

    Volume III: P-Z. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1971. Print. The. James, Edward, Janet James, and Paul Boyer. Notable American Women, 1607-1950.

    Read More

  • Black Artists in Country Music

    2843 Words  | 6 Pages

    ... Bohlman, Philip V. Music and the Racial Imagination. University Of Chicago Press, Chicago. 2001. Print.

    Read More

  • Ma Rainey's Black Bottom Analysis

    955 Words  | 2 Pages

    The theatrical production Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom is one that has many themes. Not only does the playwright August Wilson bring up several thoughts on the injustices and social issues of the time he also displays how it effected blacks. With all of these ideas it made me wonder what audience was Wilson trying to address with play. In reading the play there were several instances where I could see where Wilson was addressing a mixed audience. Let me explain.

    Read More

  • Free College Essays - The Piano Lesson

    538 Words  | 2 Pages

    Do you ever have one of those days when you remember your parents taking away all of your baseball cards or all of your comic books because you got a bad grade in one of your classes?  You feel a little depressed and your priced possession has been stolen.  This event is the same as August Wilson’s, The Piano Lesson.  The story is about a sibling rivalry, Boy Willie Charles against Berniece Charles, regarding an antique, family inherited piano.  Boy Willie wants to sell the piano in order to buy the same Mississippi land that his family had worked as slaves.  However, Berniece, who has the piano, declines Boy Willie’s request to sell the piano because it is a reminder of the history that is their family heritage.  She believes that the piano is more consequential than “hard cash” Boy Willie wants.  Based on this idea, one might consider that Berniece is more ethical than Boy Willie.

    Read More

  • Theme Of Double Consciousness In Invisible Man

    2661 Words  | 6 Pages

    When a party guest stereotypes Invisible Man and asks him to sing a “spiritual” he disrespects and de-legitimizes the artistry and cultural heritage of African-Americans. This points to a larger issue in the novel of how one utilizes one’s heritage for identity purposes and how the de-legitimizing of vernacular forms of expression through stereotyping can alienate one’s self from its own history and

    Read More

  • Music And Racial Identity

    1107 Words  | 3 Pages

    “Together the matrices of race and music occupied similar position and shared the same spaces in the works of some of the most lasting texts of Enlightenment thought..., by the end of the eighteenth century, music could embody differences and exhibit race…. Just as nature gave birth and form to race, so music exhibited remarkable affinities to nature” (Radano and Bohlman 2000: 14). Radano and Bohlman pointed out that nature is a source of differences that give rise to the different racial identities. As music embodies the physical differences of human, racial differences are not only confined to the differences in physical appearances, but also the differences in many musical features, including language, tonality and vocal expression. Nonetheless, music is the common ground of different racial identities. “In the racial imagination, music also occupies a position that bridges or overlaps with racial differences. Music fills in the spaces between racial distinctiveness….” (Radano and Bohlman 2000:8) Even though music serves as a medium through which different racial identities are voiced and celebrated individually, it establishes the common ground and glues the differences

    Read More

  • The Piano Lesson Analysis

    1593 Words  | 4 Pages

    In the play “The Piano Lesson”, August Wilson utilizes two main characters Boy Willie and Berniece to present the theme of gender roles and sexual politics. The reaction of the siblings toward the piano illustrates the role of a man and woman during the conflict. Throughout the entire play they argue over the piano and struggle with an underlying problem of choosing to honor their ancestors or leaving the family’s history in the past. Boy Willie wants to show respect to his ancestors by selling the piano to continue the Charles’s family legacy. He wants to buy Sutter’s land because Sutter was a white slave master who forced his ancestors to work on the land. However, Berniece wants to keep the piano and doesn’t want to use it because of fear. The disagreement between the siblings shows the play’s representation of gender differences.

    Read More

  • Comparative Analysis of Berniece and Boy Willie

    1083 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Piano Lesson written by August Wilson is a work that struggles to suggest how best African Americans can handle their heritage and how they can best put their history to use. This problem is important to the development of theme throughout the work and is fueled by the two key players of the drama: Berniece and Boy Willie. These siblings, who begin with opposing views on what to do with a precious family heirloom, although both protagonists in the drama, serve akin to foils of one another. Their similarities and differences help the audience to understand each individual more fully and to comprehend the theme that one must find balance between deserting and preserving the past in order to pursue the future, that both too greatly honoring or too greatly guarding the past can ruin opportunities in the present and the future.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of The Piano Lesson

    1156 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Piano Lesson by August Wilson is taking place in Pittsburg because many Blacks travelled North to escape poverty and racial judgment in the South. This rapid mass movement in history is known as The Great migration. The migration meant African Americans are leaving behind what had always been their economic and social base in America, and having to find a new one. The main characters in this play are Berniece and Boy Willie who are siblings fighting over a piano that they value in different ways. Berniece wants to have it for sentimental reasons, while Boy Willie wants it so he can sell it and buy land. The piano teaches many lessons about the effects of separation, migration, and the reunion of

    Read More

  • The Piano Lesson

    539 Words  | 2 Pages

    In The Piano Lesson, written by August Wilson, Boy Willie devises a scheme for buying Sutter’s land. Boy Willie has one part of the money saved up. He will sell the watermelons for the second part. Then he will sell the piano for a third part. The only debating issue in Boy Willie’s scheme is the piano. Berniece does not want to sell the piano. This is the only reason for a defense in Boy Willie’s scheme. Therefore, I will defend Boy Willie’s issue of selling the piano and how that liberates him in reference to his scheme for buying Sutter’s land.

    Read More

  • Piano Lesson

    662 Words  | 2 Pages

    However, his desire conflicts with the racial situation during the time of the play. The play is set during a time when blacks were primarily slaves and considered property. They also didn't own any property. His belief that he is of equal standing with a white man could probably be traced to his lineage with the piano. The piano had symbolized his ancestors since the piano has been around during his grandfather's ...

    Read More

  • Character Analysis Of Boy Willie In The Piano Lesson

    554 Words  | 2 Pages

    In this novel, The Piano Lesson, we learn that some characters are doing their best to leave their mark on the world. A main character, Boy Willie, continually attempts to do so. For instance, he says, “I got to mark my passing on the road. Just like you write on a tree, ‘Boy Willie was here.’” By this, he means that he wants to make sure the world knows that he was here, and that he left something behind. Just as his grandfather carved beautiful, intricate designs into the piano and left it for his family, Boy Willie wants to do something similar. For example, he wants to buy Sutter’s land and make it nice for generations to come. Ironically, Boy Willie wants to sell his grandfather’s statement in order to make his own.

    Read More

  • The Piano Lesson Play Analysis

    932 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the play, The Piano Lesson, music played an important role. The piano in the play represented the African American history and culture. The ghost of Sutter represented the pain and trauma that had been endured throughout the generations in the Charles family. Berniece did not play the piano because she associated it with pain and the bad things that happened to her family members. She did not want to accept the things that had happened in her family’s past. She thought that she could deny everything and act like it never happened. She believed if she continued to run from everything and everybody that the pain would go away. Berniece was burdened and haunted by the ghost of Sutter until she gave in and played the piano after all of those years. After playing the piano, Berniece was no longer burdened or haunted by the past. She was free from all of the denial. She escaped the pain through the music and reflecting on the carvings on the piano, which represented her heritage. Berniece’s brother, Boy Willie, told her “Berniece, if you and Maretha don’t keep playing on that piano… ain’t no telling… me and Sutter both liable to be back” (Wilson 108). By saying that, he meant that if she did not allow her daughter to continue playing the piano and learning about her culture that she would end up going through the same things that Berniece had gone through. Music has a huge impact on the African American culture in several ways and many things about the past can be learned through it.

    Read More

  • Tartuffe: An Excellent Example of a Neoclassical Drama

    1126 Words  | 3 Pages

    Gainor, J. Ellen., Stanton B. Garner, and Martin Puchner. The Norton Anthology of Drama, Shorter Edition. New York: W. W. Norton &, 2010. Print.

    Read More

  • Symbolism in August Wilson's Piano Lesson

    1021 Words  | 3 Pages

    In The Piano Lesson each central character learns a lesson. August Wilson uses plenty of symbolism throughout his play, the strongest symbol being the piano itself, representing the family's history, their long struggle, and their burden of their race. Throughout the play, the conflict revolves around the piano, and Berniece and Boy Willie's contrasting views about its significance and about what should be done with it. Berniece is ashamed and cannot let go of the past, or the piano, and Boy Willie wants to move his life forward, and use the piano to do so. Wilson portrays the 'lesson' of the piano as accepting and respecting one's past and moving on with one's life gracefully, through Berniece and Boy Willies contrasting actions and the play's climactic resolution.

    Read More

More about Analysis: The Piano Lesson by August Wilson

Open Document