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August Wilson Selfish Quotes

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In Fences, by August Wilson, Troy’s selfishness makes him a tragic hero because it causes him to make decisions that hurt not only himself but ultimately the people who he loves most. Troy’s inner selfishness is the sole reason for his affair with Alberta, and it is what eventually triggers the split in his family. When trying to stop the metaphorical bleeding caused by his affair, Troy characterizes himself with Rose as “we”, to which Rose responds with, “All of a sudden it’s ‘we.’ Where was ‘we’ at when you was down there rolling around with some godforsaken woman? ‘We’ should have come to an understanding before you started making a damn fool of yourself” (68). Rose is totally offended that he would even consider them together, and rightly …show more content…

After lots of arguing relating to the state of their relationship, Troy selfishly explains, “Rose, you’re not listening to me… It’s not easy to admit that I been standing in the same place for eighteen years” (70). In fury, Rose responds, “I got a life too. I gave eighteen years of my life to stand in the same spot with you. Don’t you think I ever wanted other things? Don’t you think I had dreams and hopes? What about my life? What about me” (70). Rose, rightly so, is enraged when Troy defends his actions by saying he has been stuck his whole life with her, when she has gone through the same thing. The only difference, however, is that Rose stays loyal to her family even when things are not going great, while on the other hand Troy looks out for himself for his own benefit, at the expense of his family. Troy puts himself above his family, as he was well aware that having an affair like he had would most certainly break up his family. Despite trying to defend his actions with the hardship he’s gone through, his whole family has gone through the same difficulties aswell– but he only looks out for himself. Troy’s selfish decision to make a baby with Alberta causes harm on his entire family because of the loyalty shown to him by Rose, despite not being happy at all

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The Faults of Troy Maxson August Wilson brings out the struggle of Troy Maxson in his play, Fences. All that matter to him end up feeling this struggle, for it remains constantly inside of him. Ultimately it proves to overcome Troy and make many lose the respect and love that was once felt. Troy’s actions and failure to fix them makes his true character known. By giving way to his own desires, becoming a continuation of his father and failing those he loves Troy Maxson proves to be a man flawed at his core.

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Once Cory attends Troy’s funeral, he takes a leap out of the fence they were in together & he leaves everything that has to with his father inside the fence. By doing this, he closes that chapter and he can move on with his life at

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1222 Words | 5 Pages

Troy chose to escape his reality by having an affair that gives him some laughs and good time every now and then. However, despite the flaws in Troy’s character, he was a providing family man who wants to insure a better life of his sons than the one he had. Based on the play’s time period, which took place at the 50’s, apparently the main problem of Troy Maxson’s character was racism against African Americans at the time that had prevented him from achieving his dreams. Throughout the play, Troy expresses his dissatisfaction in several scenes with the other characters.

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August Wilson Fences Symbolism

1516 Words | 7 Pages

The play, Fences by August Wilson, is about Troy Maxson and his struggling family relationships. A recurring idea throughout the story is the construction of a fence around Troy's home. Troy's fence could symbolize two things, Troy is trying to protect his family from the outside world, or Troy is isolating himself from his own family. As the construction of the fence progresses, the more severely damaged Troy's relationships become. In this play, the underlying message is that, despite the fact that fences can both protect and isolate, Troy’s fence isolates him from his family rather than to protect his family.

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2195 Words | 9 Pages

Troy responds by saying: “You gonna say, ‘thanks Rose’ and ain’t going to look to see where she got those ten dollars from?” (Wilson 19). This demonstrates that Troy feels a sense of disrespect because his son was thanking Rose for the money instead of him. Even though Rose gave the money to Lyons, she did not have a job and she solely depends on Troy. He is well aware of this and feels like he should be thanked for the money and not her.

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August Wilson Fences Literary Analysis

883 Words | 4 Pages

He becomes a "woman less man". In addition, the fence appears to symbolize thedifference in personalities of Troy and Rose. It takes Bono to make Troy realize that "Rose wants tohold on to [him]", for Rose gives everything she has to Troy, including her entire life andlove. Yet, in contrast, Troy's in no rush to build any type of fence. He

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1038 Words | 5 Pages

In the movie version of Fences, the scene plays outs in a similar fashion until the end. Troy becomes animated and angry in the alternate version, symbolizing a less controlled personality. The movie displays stereotypical dominance, typically related to anger. However, the play portrays a greater sense of superiority in Troy because he does not only try to control other people, but is able to hold back his emotions as well. Troy’s greed for supremacy creates a struggle for his family to work and connect with him.

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884 Words | 4 Pages

Troy wants to control his family. When the Scene 1 Troy’s elder son Lyon’s has come to borrow some money as a loan, but troy criticizes him badly, but his sons rememorized him that in his childhood, his father is not there to complete his needs in his youth now he is too old. He wants him to get a good job, but Lyon’s think that nothing wrong with his music and he doesn’t want to get any jobs. ‘’ Troy offers Lyon’s sound advice, but Lyon response reminds Troy and witnessing the exchange that, as Lyons said ‘’ You and I are two different people, Pop,’ and that Troy’s prescription about life and work are a ‘’day late and the dollar short’ (119)(Wilson 19).

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1203 Words | 5 Pages

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From the readers point of view, it is obvious that Rose is too good for Troy, but Rose constantly is faithful to Troy. This shows a special aspect of marriage and the relationship between Troy and Rose. It shows the level of commitment it takes to be in a marriage, but it also show the lack of commitment and gratitude that could be in a marriage. Troy ends up cheating on Rose, because he began to take what he had for granted.

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1010 Words | 5 Pages

Fences by August Wilson is a play set in 1950s Pittsburgh which chronicles the life of an African American family. Language is a crucial component of the play, revealing the characters, conflicts, and meaning of the story. In Fences, Troy is a strong character who uses his language to assert his dominance, especially over his son, Cory. Troy treats Cory with a harsh exterior, which masks his deep hopes for a better future for his son.

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978 Words | 4 Pages

Troy is controlling and often verbally abusive to his family members because he lacks a sense of control in other areas of his life, he is unable to achieve his dream of becoming a pro-baseball player or advance in his career and this makes him feel inadequate. Troy’s wife Rose represents a stereotypical mother and dutiful wife role. Rose has two disadvantages in her life because she is not only African American, she is also a woman and in some ways she is the wife you would expect during the 1950s era. Rose however, is not weak minded because she recognizes how times have changed and this what makes Troy and Rose so drastically different throughout the play. Their contrasting ideologies represent two different aspects of the “African American Experience” by showing a major question many African Americans faced during the 1950s and that is: “are times really changing?.”

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1457 Words | 6 Pages

"When the sins of our fathers visit us, we do not have to play host. We can banish them with forgiveness; As God, in His Largeness and Laws"(Wilson X).This epigraph by August Wilson provides an insight into the importance of the topic in the play Fences. In Fences, the play depicts the relationships of the Maxson family and their friends. Troy Maxson, a middle-aged African American man, is happily married to his wife Rose and takes care of his son Cory whilst occasionally interacting with his other son from a previous relationship. However, the complexities of Troy 's past create issues for him and his family and their relationships begin to deteriorate.

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