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Analyse the themes of Fences by August Wilson
Fences by august wilson character analysis
Analyse the themes of Fences by August Wilson
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Death is what we all soon to face. It is the most inevitable event of a person’s life yet it can also be a new beginning. Death is the end of two plays, Fences by August Wilson and The Sandbox by Edward Albee. These plays differ on how other characters feel about the deaths of the main characters before and after death. We always reconcile and reminisce about the life of a dead person. The main character of Fences, Troy, had a complicated relationship with his son and had an affair with another woman. Cory is having a hard time with his father but eventually receives ten dollars despite his father’s misfortune. Upon Troy’s death, Cory refuses to go to his father’s funeral suggesting he still did not forgive his father but his mother convinces him to pay his respects. In The Sandbox, Grandma is very old and is dying from old age. She is very old that her daughter and son-in-law eagerly awaits her death. Although Grandma’s daughter is quite inconsiderate, she genuinely mourns to her mother after all the entire burden that her mother caused. When a person dies, we humans don’t think of the bad things he had done but we think about what he had achieved. During a person’s life, the characters of the plays display hate to the main characters but upon their deaths that hate transforms into forgiveness. Troy Maxson is the main protagonist in the play, Fences. He is an African-American father and husband struggling to support his family. He used to be a great baseball player when he was young but now, he works as a garbage man. His mishaps greatly affect his relationship towards his family especially toward his sons, Lyons and Cory. According to Molly Wilson O’Reilly, Troy brags himself as the breadwinner in his household (O’Reilly). He ... ... middle of paper ... ...d as a hero to their families. Their death is defined on how they lived and they will be always remembered through the legacy they have left in the world. Works Cited Kearl, Michael C. “Dying well: the unspoken dimension of aging well. (Aging in Contemporary Society, Part 2: Choices and Processes).” American Behavioral scientist 39.3 (1996): 336+. Academic Onefile. Web. 28 Mar. 2011. O’Reilly, Mollie Wilson. “Fertile Ground: August Wilson’s ‘Fences’.” Commonweal 137.11 (2010): 20+. Academic OneFile. Web. 30 Mar 2011. Sinclair, Shane. “Impact of death and dying on the personal lives and practices of palliative and hospiceCare professionals.” CMAJ: Canadian Medical Association Journal 183.2 (2011): 180+.Academic OneFile.Web. 27 Mar. 2011. Wessling, Joseph H. “Wilson’s Fences.’.” The Explicator 57.2 (1999): 123+. Academic OneFile. Web. 27 Mar. 2011.
August Wilson’s Fences was centered on the life of Troy Maxson, an African American man full of bitterness towards the world because of the cards he was dealt in life amidst the 1950’s. In the play Troy was raised by an unloving and abusive father, when he wanted to become a Major League Baseball player he was rejected because of his race. Troy even served time in prison because he was impoverished and needed money so he robbed a bank and ended up killing a man. Troy’s life was anything but easy. In the play Troy and his son Cory were told to build a fence around their home by Rose. It is common knowledge that fences are used in one of two ways: to keep things outside or to keep things inside. In the same way that fences are used to keep things inside or outside Troy used the fence he was building to keep out death, his family, and his disappointments in life while Rose used the fence to keep those she cared about inside and help them bond.
Fences is a play that deals with boundaries that hold people back and the trials and tribulations of those who try or wish to cross them. The characters are African-Americans in a time before the civil rights movement, living in an industrial city. The main character, Troy Manxson, is a talented baseball player who never had the chance to let his talent shine, with restrictions on race and his time in jail as the main obstacles that held him back. He is now hard working and loves his family. However, he tends to exaggerate and has his faults, most prevalent a wandering eye when it comes to women. His wife, Rose, is younger than him and loyal, but she may not have known about all of his faults when she married him. At the beginning of the play, Troy has a son from a previous marriage, Lyons, and a son with Rose, Cory. Also appearing are Bono, Troy’s drinking buddy, and Gabriel, his brother.
Weaving together allusions to Greek mythology and the American baseball legends, August Wilson in his play Fences tells the story of Troy Maxson, the tragic hero who falls victim to his misconceptions of his world. Tenaciously holding on to his experience of racism and hardship in the 1950s, Troy does not realize the present world around him has changed. As a result, Troy tries to protect his son Cory from following his footsteps, but Cory tries to break free of his father’s authority. However, by creating this metaphorical fence to protect Cory, Troy also prevents Cory from reaching his true potential. Indeed, through metaphors and allusions, August Wilson portrays Troy Maxson as the tragic hero unable to recognize the changing African American culture around him.
Fences, a low-diction play by August Wilson, expresses the complex relationship between a father and his sons. Troy Maxson, once a baseball star in the Negro League, is now envious of his son Cory, who dreams of having a successful football career. Troy also worries that Cory will be treated with the same disrespect that he once was during his baseball career. Lyons, Troy's eldest son, is completely misunderstood by Troy, mostly because of his refusal to get a “real” job and his drive to become a musician. Wilson references stories from Troy's past to convey the reason behind Troy's frustration and actions toward his children.
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 of the world. His attitude is unpleasant, but not without justification.
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.
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
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 any one a chance to prove themselves because he was selfish. 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 shape 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. The complication begins in Troy’s youth, when his father beat him unconscious. At that moment, Troy leaves home and begins a troubled life on his own, and gaining a self-destructive outlook on life. “Fences” has many instances that can be considered the climax, but the one point in the story where the highest point of tension occurs, insight is gained and...
There are many causes that molded Troy Maxson into the dishonest, cantankerous, hypocritical person that he is in August Wilson’s play, “Fences” (1985). Troy had an exceptionally unpleasant childhood. He grew up with a very abusive father that beat him on a daily basis. His mother even abandoned him when he was eight years old. In this play, Troy lies habitually and tries to cover himself up by accusing others of lying. He is a very astringent person in general. His dream of becoming a major league baseball player was crushed as a result of his time spent in jail. By the time he was released from jail, he was too old to play baseball efficiently.
There was no “distinction between Troy Maxson, human being, and Troy Mason, baseball player,” (Pereira, 41). Troy describes his life in terms of baseball. “Fences” in baseball is “slang term for the outfield wall that must clear for a home run,” (Dreams and Zirin, 2018). The phrase “swing for the fences” or “clear the fences” derived from this, (Dreams and Zirin, 2018). Troy, who could clear the fences without a problem playing baseball, had difficulty clearing the fences in his life even though he was an outstanding baseball player. He portrays himself as not being afraid of anything and immortal to death. His family is the second generation of Maxsons and he passes on a legacy of songs his father taught him, his personal history and bitterness
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.
In August Wilson’s play “Fences” we see the life of Troy Maxson and the hardships he endured with his family. He is a African-American struggling man trying to raise a family, while while balancing his everyday life. Even as a hard working man, Troy lived with many faults. He was far from the perfect father or role-model for his sons. His wife Rose had to endure the pains that came with marriage and even had to take care of his illegitimate child Rayell that he had with another woman. Troy was still trying to be the best father and husband he could be, but struggled to express in a loving way because of his lack of commitment to his family.
Throughout the play Fences, by August Wilson, we are introduced to several of the Troy Maxson's family members. We soon learn that because of Troy's personality traits, he is unable to sustain a healthy relationship. Troy is a father, a husband, and a brother, and unfortunately, he makes it impossible for any of those numerous relationships to thrive.
In the play Fences by August Wilson, we are introduced to the Maxsons. An African American family struggling to live in Pittsburgh during the 1950’s pre civil rights movement. This play was the sixth out of ten plays in Wilson's Pittsburgh cycle. Fences was also a pulitzer prize winner. At the beginning of the play we are introduced to Troy. He is the patriarch of the family and his problems and mistakes are what lead the Maxson family to be torn apart. Troy treats his wife, Rose, and his sons, Cory and Lyons, poorly. Troy, can be seen as a villain. Troy proves himself to be more of a villain than a hero thought the play. He takes advantage of his wife Rose, treats his sons, Cory and Lyons, poorly, was once a criminal, and is unsympathetic
Death is inevitable in a health practise that happens unpredictably in all clinical settings and affect the emotions of health care providers. The emotional disturbance is an instinctive response of a normal man and will be felt no matter how many times they encounter it. It is just a part of human intrinsic behaviour. Although being told and knew that death is part of a life cycle and people pass away because of old age and illness, health professionals will still undergo significant impact from a dying patient (Ratanawongsa et al., 2005). The stress can notably affect the performance of healthcare providers in caring for the other patients. The most common responds from studies shows that doctors withdraw from other patients and colleagues