Fences Not Fence Analysis

The title of this play is called Fences, not fence. The reason fences are plural in the title is because a fence is used more than once throughout the play. A fence is a barrier, railing, or other upright structure, typically of wood or wire, enclosing an area of ground to mark a boundary, control access, or prevent escape (Google). Through out the play, Troy is the main one building the fences. Each fence being built has it’s own effect on the characters and it can be a good or bad one. For instance, Rose wants for Troy to build her a fence around the house. Her purpose for the fence is to keep her loved ones home, where it is safe. The fence that Rose has Troy build affects everyone who lives in the household. She is trying to keep her family together, with no one straying away. Bono tells Troy in Act II Scene 1, page 2093, that he should go and get some pine wood, which is soft, to build the fence. Troy responds by telling him that the pine wood is indoor wood and he needs outdoor wood to build the fence that is going outdoors. This is important to the building of the fence because it shows how steady this fence needs to be and foreshadows how steady it actually becomes in the future.

This fence being built affects their father and son relationship. Troy is trying to fence out Cory’s dream of becoming a football player. The reason he is building this fence is because he had that same dream, in baseball, and it didn’t get him nowhere. However, at the time when Troy was trying to chase his dream, of becoming a baseball player, racism still played a big part in things. Troy constantly tries to tell Cory that football isn’t going to offer him nothing because of the color of his skin. Troy is the type of parent to hold his children back because of his own failure, regardless of how great of a chance their child have at making