Introduction
August Wilson’s Fences” is a narrative enmeshed with misunderstandings surrounding a Black American household living in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania. The conflict mainly revolves around the head of the family – Troy Maxson – and the main character. Troy’s encounters arise with Cory and Lyons, who are his sons, Rose, his wife, and his best ally Bono. This family’s life revolves around a fence. In their backyard, several affiliations come to wither and blossom here. Some examples of the figurative and literal fences existing in this play include the symbolic fence between African Americans and whites at the time and the physical fence that Troy builds to shield his family.
Troy inhibits other people from interfering with his life by placing himself in a metaphorical and literal fence, which influences his liaison with his mortality, son, and wife. In the story, viewers perceive an imperfect fence that embodies Troy’s drifting bond with Rose. Rose tries to make Cory and Tory build a fence to give them protection. “Some people build fences to keep people out,’ and other people build fences to keep people in. She loves you” (Wilson 61). Troy is entirely stubborn in his behaviors, making him unaware of the time changes. Since he was denied a chance to play baseball, Troy goes ahead to fence Cory from getting into the college football team. Cory and Troy’s association mimics the fence by its physical attribution and purpose. The two are alienated by their diverse cohorts when it comes to this factor, although they still bond since they have a similar interest in sports. Just as if a fence is intended to isolate outsiders, yet linked to building the fence, Cory and Troy’s affiliation stays broken throughout the narrative. At one moment, Troy kicks out Cory and the fence turns out to be concrete disunion between the two. The father and son took the time to build a fence, which later on created an emotional and literal barrier.
Unequal Treatment
Black Americans in the mid-20th Century refused unequal treatment compared to the whites. Fences exhibit the hindrance of white supremacy during the era of Black seclusion. The play reveals the experiences of the Maxson’s family predicaments, rebellion, frustration, and struggles. The family builds a fence to shield them from slavery in America for a period, even though it continues to oppress the Black community. Troy faces several segregation challenges when he desires to get into the baseball team. The author employs baseball to show the discrimination experienced during this time. Troy states, “I am talking about if you play ball, then they ought to have let you play. Do not care what color you aree” (Wilson 81). This phrase demonstrates Troy’s frustration when he wanted to play baseball but could not because of the racial fence built by the white supremacy. Similarly, Rose builds a metaphorical fence to ensure her family stays positive and happy despite the discrimination surrounding them.
The building of the fences is quite symbolic as Troy attempts to shield his infidelities and desires. Through this, he finds himself fenced in, trapped between his illusory and pragmatic principles. Similarly, the author expresses that Fences provide a distinct perspective on how individuals see Black Americans, and this could influence their thoughts and interactions with one another.
Conclusion
Throughout history, fences have been built by civilizations to shield their group members and lockout the adversaries. In today’s society, individuals are creating literal fences to protect themselves against the enemy, while others create metaphorical fences to safeguard their feelings. Wilson thus did not name his play, Fences, merely because the theatrical acts rely on the construction of a fence in the family’s courtyard. Instead, his characters’ lives transform through the fence-building mission that functions as a figurative and literal tool.
