Fences

I think that the quote plays a significant role in both works. In Fences, I think that Cory's reaction to his father at the funeral might be one specific instant where Wilson's quote is most...

Troy and his son Cory seem to have parallel lives in many ways, which manifests in both similarities and differences. One similarity is that both Troy and Cory have fathers who are cold and...

The short answer is that it affects his future in almost every possible sense, from how he approaches his day to day existence to how he treats his family. Troy is a man who is constantly depressed...

Each character sees this conflict differently. For Cory, Troy is creating a rivalry with him regarding sports. Cory feels that Troy is refusing to allow him to play football out of a jealous...

Troy Maxson is a generally unhappy man, and he’s also unable to shoulder the blame for his shortcomings, preferring to project his failures onto his circumstances or onto those around him. The fact...

Because of Gabriel's head injury he received in World War II, he believes he is the angel Gabriel and that St. Peter is going to one day call upon him to open the gates of heaven. At the end,...

It is possible to view Rose as a long-suffering wife who, as the previous educator mentioned, is a complementary and "countervailing force to Troy's own sense of destruction." It is also possible...

The play Fences was written by African-American writer August Wilson in 1985. It is the sixth installment in Wilson’s ten-part series, Pittsburgh Cycle. In 1987, it was awarded both the Tony Award...

In 1985, August Wilson wrote the play Fences, which centers around an African American man named Troy who struggles to provide for his family in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Troy was a great baseball...

Situational irony refers to a situation in which actions have the opposite effect of what is intended or expected. One example of situational irony in Fences is that Troy builds a fence around his...

Lyons’s response to his father shows the reader that Lyons prioritizes his passions and desire to enjoy life over his need to make money. Lyons is a musician, and making music is not a lucrative...

Gabriel's trumpet is another important symbol in the play. After Troy's death, his disabled brother Gabe blows into his instrument with all his might in order to open the gates of Heaven. Gabe's...

Rose’s statement introduces a notion that is evident in all of the play’s events. For example, consider how Troy struggles to understand that his sons' experiences with society will be different...

The meaning of Gabriel's dancing and his line "That's the way that go!" at the end of the play Fences is a celebration of Troy entering the gates of heaven. Wilson writes this about Gabriel's...

These lines come at the close of the First Act. It is a moment where Troy finds out the Cory has been neglecting his job and his chores in order to play football and pursue his dream. Troy sees...

Gabe's infirmity plays several roles in the play, but two seem to resonate with me the most. The first is that Gabe gave his life and service to the nation during the war, only to return a shell...

Troy Maxson’s character does not undergo any significant development over the course of Fences. By the time the play’s action begins, Troy is shown as having difficulty maintaining personal...

There are a number of traits which make Troy Maxson a difficult protagonist to like. He is abusive, adulterous, and completely lacking of compassion and consideration. There's really not much to...

Troy is certainly an imperfect father. As a child, he was saddled with an abusive father, so he does not have an ideal model of what a father should be when dealing with his own children. Troy is a...

Bono is a foil to Troy, meaning that he provides a contrast to Troy's negative qualities and is the voice of conscience. Bono possesses the qualities that Troy does not. Bono is, for example, a...

One of the most important characteristics of the relationship between Troy and his son Cory is that they are effectively repeating history (and, ultimately, breaking the cycle of history). As a...

On the surface, the primary conflict of Fences is the struggle of Troy to accept that his son, Cory, is likely to surpass him in terms of his success. Troy was an outstanding baseball player, but...

Though Troy does not admit it directly, it becomes clear, through his recollections, that he is repeating the mistakes of his father. These mistakes are a lack of compassion for his son, Cory, and...

At the end of August Wilson's play Fences, Raynell, who is seven years old, has planted a garden (presumably with the help of Rose). On the day of her father's funeral, she is outside, poking...

The significance of Troy Maxson’s singing about a dog named “Blue,” or “Old Blue,” lies both in the African American origins of the musical genre known as the blues as well as Troy’s nostalgia for...

In these two scenes, the relationship between Troy and Rose is strained, to say the least. At the beginning of scene 2, Troy and Rose have not been on speaking terms for months. This is due to Troy...

Troy Maxson's relationships with both of his sons can be characterized with complexity and antagonism. Troy Maxson is portrayed as a bitter man who resents the fact that he was not given the...

Troy Maxson's primary conflict is internal as he struggles to overcome his bitterness and accept the fact that his son, Cory, will surpass him in terms of success. As a young man, Troy was an...

In the section of the play called "Setting," Wilson describes the decrepit state of the Maxson house. It is described as old and is fronted by a wooden porch that badly needs a paint job. The...

Troy's background and experience in prison helps formulate a great deal of his adult identity. On one hand, prison becomes the natural extension of his own relationship with his father. The...

There’s already a lot of answers to this question that have been posted, so I’m going to try to focus on a few different ideas about the symbolic nature of fences in Fences. The protagonist of...

Additionally, I would say that baseball symbolizes the American Dream. In American culture, baseball is known as something that is quintessentially American (although it now has significant appeal...

Troy Maxson, a former baseball player in the Negro Leagues, compares much of life to a game of baseball. In baseball, players get three chances, and Troy often feels cheated because he has not...

Bono and Troy's friendship serves as a type of juxtaposition technique in Wilson's play. Bono in some ways is Troy's foil. Where Troy is charismatic, Bono is mild-mannered. We see this in the...

Women are the glue that hold people together in Fences. Rose, Troy's wife, is the central force keeping her family together, while her husband tries to cut people off from him. For example, Rose...

Troy feels that his role as a father is to protect his sons from the harshness of life, including the racism that he experienced when he was younger. He comes across as unloving and gruff at times,...

I would say that love is another theme in Fences--not merely the obvious expression of love between Troy and Rose, or that which Troy expresses toward Raynell in her infancy, but also the perceived...

The character of Gabriel is analogous to that of the wise fool in Shakespeare's plays, providing a kind of commentary on events and other characters in the play. Gabriel's disabilities, stemming...

Troy Maxon is not a good man, but that doesn't mean that those around him can't love or forgive him. Troy takes advantage of people throughout his life. Not only does he commit murder, he doesn't...

The fence is given a specific significance in the dialogue of the play when it is referred to as something that keeps things out and also keeps things in. Regarding Troy and his family, the fence...

In the play Fences, August Wilson explores several meanings of the word betrayal. For instance, he explores how betrayal impacts families. Consider how Troy cheats on his wife, Rose, with Alberta....

One theme in Fences is love—more specifically, the balancing act of love versus obligation. Troy is a character who has difficulty placing his love in his family. Perhaps this difficulty stems from...

Troy Maxson is depicted as a conflicted, selfish man who is still bitter about not playing baseball in the Majors because of racial discrimination. Even though Troy is fifty-three years old, he has...

In August Wilson's Fences, Cory and Lyons are half-brothers, and while they share some characteristics with each other and with their father, Troy, they are really quite different in their...

August Wilson’s Fences features several examples of names and objects endowed with symbolic meaning and significance. Not surprisingly, there are repeated references to “fences,” both actual and...

The setting is the yard which fronts the only entrance to the MAXSON household, an ancient two-story brick house set back off a small alley in a big-city neighborhood. The entrance to the house is...