In 1987, August Wilson’s Fences was a part of his Pittsburg Cycle of dramas of the 20th Century. These plays were used to “examine important elements of African American experiences” (Gardner 1331). The symbolisms in the play are used to tell the late life story of Troy Maxon and his relationship with his family. All throughout the play, various events show that Troy believes he isn’t where he should be in life and that the world treated him unjustly. He believes that he has to venture outside of his family or fences to find relief and satisfaction. At the start of the play, Wilson leads the audience to believe that Troy Maxon lives a happy and content life. The author then makes Troy’s unhappiness and self-disappointment apparent.
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Troy was in the Negro League and played baseball until he was over 40 years old. The issue comes when Troy is not chosen by the recently desegregated professional baseball league due to his age. The dream that he had of playing for the professional white league was crushed. He believed that after all his hard work, he still had nothing to show for it in his late years. This defeat in his career took a serious mental and emotional toll on Troy. From then on, he saw his family and his life as a fence that he just wanted to escape from. It only made it worse for him that he could not completely escape because of his belief that as a man he had a duty to provide for …show more content…
The symbol of the fence throughout this play connects everything back to the fact that Troy Maxon was unhappy with his life, and felt as if he were a failure. Nothing about Lyons reminded Troy of his inadequacy, hence their relationship was better. Troy was jealous of Cory and his success reminded Troy of what he could not accomplish. Instead of wanting the best for his sons as a man should, Troy did not want to see them do better than he did in life. Wilson used the fence to tell this story. It was not just a story of a man who believes his life has failed, but a look into the struggles and beliefs of an African American family man in the
Troy was in the Negro League and played baseball until he was over 40 years old. The issue comes when Troy is not chosen by the recently desegregated professional baseball league due to his age. The dream that he had of playing for the professional white league was crushed. He believed that after all his hard work, he still had nothing to show for it in his late years. This defeat in his career took a serious mental and emotional toll on Troy. From then on, he saw his family and his life as a fence that he just wanted to escape from. It only made it worse for him that he could not completely escape because of his belief that as a man he had a duty to provide for …show more content…
The symbol of the fence throughout this play connects everything back to the fact that Troy Maxon was unhappy with his life, and felt as if he were a failure. Nothing about Lyons reminded Troy of his inadequacy, hence their relationship was better. Troy was jealous of Cory and his success reminded Troy of what he could not accomplish. Instead of wanting the best for his sons as a man should, Troy did not want to see them do better than he did in life. Wilson used the fence to tell this story. It was not just a story of a man who believes his life has failed, but a look into the struggles and beliefs of an African American family man in the