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Symbolism In August Wilson's Fences

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The play Fences by August Wilson takes place in the 1950’s in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the same time and place in which August grew up (“August”). During this time before the Civil Rights movement, African Americans faced significant discrimination. August in his own life experienced racism first hand as he grew up and lead to him dropping out of high school at the age of fifteen (“August”). Throughout the play, parallels can be drawn between August Wilson’s life as a child and young man to the characters and their experiences in Fences. The struggles August and many other African Americans faced during in the 1950’s are deeply embedded in all aspects of the play; however, this paper focuses on Wilson’s use of symbolism to reflect the the …show more content…

Troy uses baseball as a metaphor when his relationship with his son and his wife come to an end (Glasco). Using strikes, he counts the number of mistakes Cory makes leading up to the climactic strike three, their fight with a baseball bat on the front lawn. He uses baseball as a metaphor again as he attempts to explain his affair with Alberta to Rose. Furthermore, he speaks of death in terms of baseball saying it’s “nothing but a fastball on the outside corner” (Wilson 1430). Thus, baseball might be symbolic of Troy’s fatal flaw (i.e. doing what he believes is right regardless of the consequences) ultimately leading to his demise and loss to death. As part of the set, there is a ball of rags hanging from a tree. This ball might reflect how Troy’s baseball career remained tethered to the ground, and while he had the ability to hit any ball out of the park, discrimination tied his career down so he couldn’t get anywhere. Therefore, it would reflect the failed dreams of many African Americans during the 50’s and how racism held them back from an economic homerun (Gibson). Cory’s football recruitment along with the mentions of integrated Major League Baseball (MLB) signal the social changes that take place in the 1960’s. In 1947, Jackie Robinson became the first African American MLB player, and while integration was slow, all 16 MLB teams were integrated by

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The dynamic between a father and son is never a simple journey, but instead, comes with curveballs thrown left and right. In Fences, by August Wilson, he writes of the hardships between a father and son relationship and the difficulties a father has over trying to shield his son from life’s cruelties, to the salvation found between being fenced in and finally being placed outside of the fence—both literally and metaphorically. Through out the play, there are numerous confrontations between Troy and Cory—whether it be when Cory asks Troy whether or not he loves him or when Cory throws his football helmet towards the direction of Troy—which show the difficult and complicated relationship between father and son. Also prevalent in the play, was the lack of a father and male figure in Troy’s own life, during his most influential and important years. Troy recognizes that and the way he was/is treated by society in general and wanted to “help” his son by showing Cory the difficult lessons Troy learned during his youth, as a way to lessen the pain that would be inflicted on his son later on.

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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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August Wilson's play Fences addresses a great content of interpreting and inheriting history. Throughout Fences, much of the conflict emerge because the characters are at disparity with the way they see their foregoing and what they want to do with their forthcoming. Fences explores how the damaged aspirations of one generation can taint the dreams of the next generation on how they deal with the creation of their own identity when their role model is a full of dishonesty. Wilson illustrates his qualities primarily through his use of symbolism in the play Fences.  

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In the article "Baseball as History and Myth in August Wilson's Fences" by Susan Koprince, Susan says that "Troy's front yard is literally turned into a battleground during his confrontations with his younger son Cory" (Koprince 354). With each argument and conflict, Cory slowly characteristics change in the story. In the beginning of the story, he was a cheerful kid hopeful for his future. However because of the denial of pursing football and the constant back and forth between him and Tory, he becomes very bitter just like his father. This isn't a good thing because once Cory picks up his father characteristics, it forces him to see the world in a single perspective and that's not his full potential but an intentional effect from Troy's reactionary

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Troy displays an even greater desire for dominance over his other son, Cory, because of tension and conflict between the characters. A central conflict in the plot of Fences is that Cory wants to play football professionally but his father will not let him. As Ama Wattley states in Father-Son Conflict and the American Dream, “due to racial discrimination… [Troy] directs his son away from the dream of success and toward the pragmatism of surviving and coping in a racist society” (Wattley 3). Troy’s emotional conflict against himself and society for not participating in major league baseball coupled with Cory’s possible success creates a strain on their

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August Wilson faces a lot of difficulties in his life. He begins writing Fences in the twentieth century, and he portrays the African American experience between the 1900s to 2000 (Wilson 11). In Fence August Wilson tells the story of a father, Troy Maxson’s lives in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Troy was a very talented baseball perspective with hopes to play in the major leagues. Maxson’s had the bad luck of having to grow up when racism was the biggest part of America.

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Don’t care what color you were. Come telling me I come along too early. If you could play… then they ought to have let you play” (Wilson pg.12). Even though Troy was able to play ball for the Negro Leagues, not being able to play for the major leagues has tainted his views on life, and thus, the ability for an African American man to pursue his version of American Dream. Consequently, Troy continuously associates death with baseball: “Death ain’t nothing.

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The play “Fences” by August Wilson shows the dynamics in relationships and the multiple dramatic means by which they are established by using one pinnacle point. Wilson uses his main character Troy to stem of four other types of relationships. He shows the complexities of marriage and love in the relationship between Troy and Troy’s wife, Rose. He shows the commitment and betrayal of in the relationship between Troy and Troy’s

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"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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In August Wilson’s playwright Fences, the narrator portrays racism in a social system, in the workplace, and in sports, which ultimately affects Troy’s aspirations. Troy Maxson is constantly facing the racism that is engraved into the rules of racial hierarchy –– fair and unfair, spoken and unspoken. Troy suffers many years of racism when he plays in the Negro major Baseball League; therefore he decides to protect Cory from ever experiencing those blockades in his drive for success. In the end, although Troy is always driving to obtain agency, Troy always succumbs to the rules of racism because those racist ideologies are too hard to overcome. Throughout the play, Troy is perpetually confronting the racist social system that displays unspoken

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