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Literary analysis of august wilson's fences
Literary analysis of august wilson's fences
The life of African Americans in fences
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In August Wilson’s Fences, relationships were a big part of the story because every character had a different kind of relationship with each other. Troy had a relationship with every character in the play and it was not the same kind of relationship. Troy Have a complicated relationship with every character in the play because troy character is difficult and it cause conflicts with everyone character in Fences (Blumenthal). Troy has a personal relationship with his self and it was kind of a fictitious relationship but to Troy it was realer than anything in his life. Troy was a denial type a person so he really disagreed with others wisdom and advice and stuck to his on philosophy. He had a rough life growing up his family history in the south of slavery carried over in his entire life and affected his everyday life (Pereira). Troy is a man that takes on all his responsibilities and a very hard and passionate worker but also has difficulties with his inner self which made him build a relationship with his inner self and always believed that he had to trust and go with his abnormal thoughts.
Troy had dreams of Major League Baseball that he could have accomplished but in that time blacks was not allowed in the League, even though Troy was good enough to play they just were not letting blacks in the league, which leaded into believing self created illusions (Blumenthal). Troy believed that one time he was in a real battle with Death that was the toughest battle he has ever fought and won. He said that he really struggled hard and that he was extremely brave and stood strong and faced death and went on and on with death for days and finally defeated it. Troy said it was a very dark cold battle ground that they were fighting and tha...
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Pereira, Kim. "August Wilson: Overview." Reference Guide to American Literature. Ed. Jim Kamp. 3rd ed. Detroit: St. James Press, 1994. Literature Resources from Gale. Web. 13 Jan. 2014.
Shannon, Sandra G. "The Ground on Which I Stand: August Wilson's Perspective on African American Women." May All Your Fences Have Gates: Essays on the Drama of August Wilson. Ed. Alan Nadel. Iowa City: University of Iowa Press, 1994. 150-164. Rpt. in Contemporary Literary Criticism. Ed. Jeffrey W. Hunter. Vol. 222. Detroit: Gale, 2006. Literature Resources from Gale. Web. 13 Jan. 2014.
Tibbetts, John C. "August Wilson Interview." Literature Film Quarterly 30.4 (2002): 238-242. Rpt. in Contemporary Literary Criticism. Ed. Jeffrey W. Hunter. Vol. 222. Detroit: Gale, 2006. Literature Resources from Gale. Web. 13 Jan. 2014.
Wilson, August. Fences. New York: Plume, 1986.
On theme of August Wilson’s play “King Hedley II” is the coming of age in the life of a black man who wants to start a new life and stay away from violence. Wilson wrote about the black experience, and the struggle that many black people faced and that is seen “King Hedley II” because there are two different generations portrayed in King Hedley II and Elmore. Reporting the African American encounter in the twentieth century, Wilson's cycle of plays, including a play for every decade. The African-American group's relationship to its own particular history is a critical component in the play.
Without recognizing the early hardships of Troy’s life, it is easy to dismiss him and his cynical outlook. What can be learned from his story is evident. Never judge someone for his or her seemingly unwarranted attitude because there is a good chance it is completely defensible. Works Cited: Rich, Frank. Theater: Wilson's Fences.
The theme of August Wilson’s play “Fences” is the coming of age in the life of a broken black man. Wilson wrote about the black experience in different decades and the struggle that many blacks faced, and that is seen in “Fences” because there are two different generations portrayed in Troy and Cory. Troy plays the part of the protagonist who has been disillusioned throughout his life by everyone he has been close to. He was forced to leave home at an early age because his father beat him so dramatically. Troy never learned how to treat people close to him, and he never gave anyone a chance to prove themselves because he was selfish.
In August Wilson’s drama, “Fences,” a man named Troy struggles with feelings of unfulfilled dreams and extreme pride. Troy is unable to come to terms with his own fallacies throughout the play, and he fails to see the world through other points of view. He becomes prideful and arrogant because he feels he knows exactly how the world works, or should work, and he inadvertently destroys the lives of everyone around him. Troy’s pride causes him to believe dreams and hopes are useless in the real world. This belief causes him to ruin his own son’s dreams and causes his wife to despise him for the rest of his life. Pride is a harmful thing. Being too prideful can ruin one’s own life and the lives of his or her loved ones.
“Fences” is a play written by August Wilson about a family living in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1957. Troy and Rose have been married for 18 years and have two grown children; Lyons and Corey. Troy is an uptight, prideful man who always claims that he does not fear death, the rest of his family is more laxed and more content with their lives than Troy is. As the play progresses the audience learns more about Troy’s checkered past with sharecropping, his lack of education and the time he spent in prison. The audience also learns more about Troy’s love for baseball and the dreams he lost due to racism and segregation. In the middle of the play the author outwardly confirms what the audience has been suspecting; Troy isn’t exactly satisfied with his life. He feels that he does not get to enjoy his life and that his family is nothing more than a responsibility. Getting caught up in this feelings, Troy cheats on Rose with a woman named Alberta and fathers a child with the mistress. By the end of the play Troy loses both of the women and in 1965, finally gets the meeting with death that he had been calling for throughout the play. Over the
Reading literature allows the reader to experience feelings of others through literary characters of largely differing backgrounds. This leads to an increased sensitivity and consideration of those around us, which is also called having empathy. August Wilson uses strong examples of metaphors, diction, personification, and various other devices to make the reader empathize with Rose in his play Fences by allowing us to dive deeper into her thoughts and feelings.
Greenblatt, Stephen, and M. H. Abrams. The Norton Anthology of English Literature. 9th ed. Vol. A. New York: W.W. Norton, 2012. Print
Troy Maxson is portrayed as a big man with a very big personality and a lot of dignity. He is a bitter guy who believes that he owes his family absolutely everything, from his money down to even his own soul. He is the type of man who wants more than what he can get and that is what drives him but it is also that very “want” that leads him into a very tragic life. Writing on the idea of Troy being a tragic hero, Martin says “Troy’s strengths are found in his willingness to fulfill his duty at all times. He also speaks directly to his dignity regarding his position of work and his career in baseball) Martin, 2) “Fences” Troy has many
Conflicts and tensions between family members and friends are key elements in August Wilson's play, Fences. The main character, Troy Maxon, has struggled his whole life to be a responsible person and fulfill his duties in any role that he is meant to play. In turn, however, he has created conflict through his forbidding manner. The author illustrates how the effects of Troy's stern upbringing cause him to pass along a legacy of bitterness and anger which creates tension and conflict in his relationships with his family.
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.
In the play Fences, by August Wilson, the main character, Troy Maxson is involved in numerous relationships with family members throughout the entire eight years that the story takes place. Troy is a father, husband, and brother to other characters in the play. Unfortunately for Troy, a strong-minded and aggressive man, he constantly complicates the relationships with his family members. Troy's hurtful actions and words make it nearly impossible for him to sustain healthy relationships with not only his two sons, but also his wife and brother.
In the end Troy died living behind a trail of animosity between him and his family. In my opinion his story is that of a tragic hero. He began being loved and praised by his family but eventually and gradually, he began to succumb to the weight of racism. It can be said that the effects of racism finally took the better of Troy, and consequentially it ruled his life. Like his fictional stories, death finally took him.
Abrams, M.H., ed. The Norton Anthology of English Literature. 6th ed. Vol. 2. New York: Norton, 1993.
August Wilson created many themes throughout his famous play, Fences, but the most prominent one is the relationship between fathers and sons. The three father-son relationships introduced in this play seem to be complicated or difficult to understand. However, it is clear that the relationships built between Troy Maxson and his son Cory, Troy and his other son Lyons, and Troy and his own father are not love-driven. The parallelism of actions, events, and tension amongst each of the father-son relationships in the play illustrate how the sons try to break free from the constraints the father has set, yet in the end, these attempts seem to be pointless as the father leaves an everlasting effect on the sons, ultimately creating a cycle of actions