August Vollmer

Possibly the most exciting achievement in August Wilson’s career is his creation of the Century Cycle. It is a series of ten plays that illustrates the African American experience in the twentieth century. Each play is set in a different decade as they give realistic encounters of the various events that happens in that particular decade. The cycle isn’t a serial story but there are repeated appearances of characters at different stages of their life. However, many have pointed out Wilson’s lack…

Waking up to find yourself in a completely different body has to be hard, but when you are no longer in a human body, everything becomes more difficult. In Franz Kafka’s The Metamorphosis, Gregor wakes up to find himself transformed into a bug. With Kafka’s background in reading the Word of God, this novel has been compared to the Bible because Grete played a similar role to Judas, Gregor’s downfall was brought by an apple, his family does not care for him before he dies. In a way, his sister…

The play “Equus” by Peter Shaffer and the short story “Metamorphosis” by Franz Kafka both demonstrate alienation in the two main characters. Alan Strang in “Equus” becomes isolated from society and his family because of an extreme passion for horses, while Gregor Samsa in “Metamorphosis” is a character who has inherently isolated himself his whole life and he somehow becomes more isolated when he turns into a bug overnight. Both Alan and Gregor go through their estrangement in strikingly similar…

Metamorphosis Symbolism In the story “Metamorphosis”, by Franz Kafka, Gregor Samsa’s father throws an apple at Gregor’s body, the apple causing him pain symbolizes the relation between Gregor’s physical and emotional struggling. Before the catastrophe of the apple being thrown took place, Gregor possessed signs of suffering, as for when he initially woke up and realized he was a bug Gregor had sharp aches and itches on his left side. His job before the transformation caused Gregor some…

In the Mid 1940s, On April 27, 1945, an inspiring poet and playwright was born. August Wilson wasn’t originally born as ‘August Wilson’, he was born as Frederick August Kittel, Jr. August Wilson was the fourth child out of six children and the oldest son. He was born in Hill District of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to Frederick August Kittel, Sr. a German immigrant and baker and Daisy Wilson, a cleaning woman of African descent. He had a rather humble childhood. He was mainly raised by his mother…

but it has no place in the free world. Yet this practice of grouping people into categories extends far beyond a science fictional world of the future. Most examples of labeling are born out of ignorance and prejudice. In William Faulkner’s Light in August, when Joe Brown struggles to pin the murder of Miss Burden on Joe Christmas, he desperately exclaims that Christmas has African-American blood. With this, the sheriff resolves that Joe Christmas really did commit the murder. “I always thought…

Fences by August Wilson is a play set in 1957 about Troy Maxson and the problems he deals with at work and at home. In this play Troy deals with his son Cory wanting to play college football, trying to find equality in his work place, and an affair. Although this play’s main character is Troy, his wife Rose is a character that has her own share of problems. Rose is ten years younger than Troy and they have one child together, Cory. She is a loving and faithful wife who always finds it in her…

Fences, a play by August Wilson present a typical class working African American by the name of Troy Maxson and his family living in a hostile environment. Troy and his best friend Bono works for a garbage company they feel as if the company discriminate against black truck drivers. Troy and Bono are married but Bono doesn’t have kids. Every Friday is payday and every payday Troy have a son outside his marriage name Lyons which he only shows up to borrow money or payback the money he owes Troy.…

The Piano Lesson by August Wilson explores the conflict within a family to sell their long-held piano. The inciting incident occurs when Boy Willie tells his sister Bernice that he plans on selling the piano. Berniece is completely opposed to this prospect. The piano has a history through their family and she finds that it is a tradition that she must keep alive. The crises occurs when Sutter’s ghost prevents Lymon and Boy Willie from being able to move the piano. Boy Willie finds this…

Fence is used mainly to surround and protect. Many occasions in the play a sense of fence is created to put away someone or something. Discrimination is sent out as a fence to keep away Africans from whites. Troy says all drivers of trucks are white he says “You think only white fellows got sense enough to drive a truck. That isn’t no paper job! Hell, anybody can drive a truck”. Racial discrimination is set out as per job given. He urges that all people can drive. He tells Cory that whites can’t…