Austin Wilson's Fences: Is Troy A Good Parent?

Austin Wilson's Fences focuses on an African-American family in the 1950s in Pittsburg, and their troubles. They experienced racism, problems with money and parenting. I believe that Troy is both a good and bad parent, because he financially takes care of his children, doesn't use them for his own benefit, and doesn't listen to what they say. Instead, he does what he thinks is best for them without their input.
One of the reasons Troy is a good parent is because he takes care of his children financially. He used the money from his brother’s disability check to pay for their house. Without that money, they'd have nowhere to live. He works at a sanitation department and lifts garbage into trucks. He gives his paycheck to Rose, his wife, so that she can use the money properly. All the money that he gets goes toward food and bills. While arguing with Cory, Troy says, “...While you thinking about a TV, I got to be thinking about the roof...and whatever else goes wrong around here…,” (Wilson

Troy put a stop to Cory's chance at being a football player because Cory lied about keeping his job. When Rose asks Cory why he’s sad when he gets home from school, he replies with “Papa done went up to the school and told Coach Zellman I can't play football no more. Wouldn't even let me play the game. Told me to tell the recruiter not to come,” (Wilson 57). This is when we find out that Troy put a stop to Cory's chance at being a football player because Cory lied about keeping his job. While keeping that in mind, Troy never did support Cory's dream to play football professionally. When Rose asks Troy why Cory can’t play football, Troy says “...I decided seventeen years ago that boy wasn’t getting involved in no sports. Not after what they did to me in the sports,’” (Wilson 39). This shows that Troy is not letting Cory do it so that he doesn't sustain the same emotional pain he went