Fences MWDS
Author - ANSAugust Wilson
Year of Publication - ANS1985
Genre - ANSDrama
Characteristics of Genre - ANSEmotional development: There is a coming of age from Cory's
stand point. he struggles with he fact that his father does not actually love him and that
Troy only feels a legal responsibility
Relation to Real Life Situations - Seeing as though that this play is set in the 1950s and 60s,
Troy along with other characters have to deal with the adversity of being black in america.
Plot Summary - ANSThe play Fences is about a man named Troy Maxon, a black man that
works on a garbage truck for a living. Troy used to be a very successful baseball player for the
negro league, Troy had big aspirations for playing in the major leagues, but seeing as though he
us a black man he isn't allowed because the majors are only for the whites. After the Negro
Leagues die out, Troy is left with a feeling of hostility because he feels as though that the whites
have taken his passion away from him. Troy decides to obtain a job that they can not take away
from him, working in sanitation. Troy carries this mentality and pushes it onto his son when he
wants to play college football. When Cory decides that he wants to give up his job at the A&P
(grocery store) for the football season, Troy is very upset. Troy insists that Cory needs to stop
focusing so hard on football and start taking his job at the A&P (grocery store) more seriously.
Troy believes that if Cory gets his heart invested into something like football, they (the whites)
will take it away from him; Troy tells Corey that if he stays at a job that they need him at, they
can't take that away from him. Troy turns down the college recruiter that had been looking at
Corey and crushes Corey's dreams. Throughout the play Rose is consistently trying to remind
Cory and Troy to finish the fence that is around their house.
Quote:
"Some people build fences to keep people out and other people build fences to keep people in.
Rose wants to hold on to you all. She loves you." -Bono - ANSThroughout the entire novel,
Rose is consistently asking Troy to finish the fence that is around their house. On the exterior, it
seems that Rose might just want to have this done so the house looks nicer and to be
separated from the old run down house next to them, but it is so much more. Rose feels as
though that everyone in their family is slipping away from her and the only way to keep them
close is to enclose them in the fence.
Quote:
"the white man ain't gonna let him go nowhere near that football"
Author - ANSAugust Wilson
Year of Publication - ANS1985
Genre - ANSDrama
Characteristics of Genre - ANSEmotional development: There is a coming of age from Cory's
stand point. he struggles with he fact that his father does not actually love him and that
Troy only feels a legal responsibility
Relation to Real Life Situations - Seeing as though that this play is set in the 1950s and 60s,
Troy along with other characters have to deal with the adversity of being black in america.
Plot Summary - ANSThe play Fences is about a man named Troy Maxon, a black man that
works on a garbage truck for a living. Troy used to be a very successful baseball player for the
negro league, Troy had big aspirations for playing in the major leagues, but seeing as though he
us a black man he isn't allowed because the majors are only for the whites. After the Negro
Leagues die out, Troy is left with a feeling of hostility because he feels as though that the whites
have taken his passion away from him. Troy decides to obtain a job that they can not take away
from him, working in sanitation. Troy carries this mentality and pushes it onto his son when he
wants to play college football. When Cory decides that he wants to give up his job at the A&P
(grocery store) for the football season, Troy is very upset. Troy insists that Cory needs to stop
focusing so hard on football and start taking his job at the A&P (grocery store) more seriously.
Troy believes that if Cory gets his heart invested into something like football, they (the whites)
will take it away from him; Troy tells Corey that if he stays at a job that they need him at, they
can't take that away from him. Troy turns down the college recruiter that had been looking at
Corey and crushes Corey's dreams. Throughout the play Rose is consistently trying to remind
Cory and Troy to finish the fence that is around their house.
Quote:
"Some people build fences to keep people out and other people build fences to keep people in.
Rose wants to hold on to you all. She loves you." -Bono - ANSThroughout the entire novel,
Rose is consistently asking Troy to finish the fence that is around their house. On the exterior, it
seems that Rose might just want to have this done so the house looks nicer and to be
separated from the old run down house next to them, but it is so much more. Rose feels as
though that everyone in their family is slipping away from her and the only way to keep them
close is to enclose them in the fence.
Quote:
"the white man ain't gonna let him go nowhere near that football"
