Preview

Pulitzer Prize for Drama and Troy

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
697 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Pulitzer Prize for Drama and Troy
Franklin Reyes
Professor Neeley Gossett
English 1102
1 October 2014
Fences
In the play “Fences” by August Wilson, the main characters Cory and Troy are building a fence that Rose their wife/mom has asked them to built. August Wilson did not name his play, Fences, simply because the dramatic action depends strongly on the building of a fence in the Maxson's backyard. Rather, the characters lives change around the fence-building project that serves as both a literal and a figurative device, representing the relationships that bond and break in the arena of the backyard. Rose wants the fence built adds meaning to her character because she sees the fence as something positive and necessary. Bono observes that Rose wants the fence built to hold in her loved ones. Rose knows that Cory and Troy do not get along as well and hopes the fence can bring them closer by working on it together. To Rose, a fence is a symbol of her love for her family. Rose knows the front yard is where they hang out Friday nights and tell their stories and hopes the fence can make them closer and more exclusive to each other. The fence has a purpose to separate them from the world.
While Troy is constantly trying to keep things out, his wife, Rose, is trying to keep things in. The fence actually comes to symbolize this difference between the two characters. Troy on the other hand think the fence is a drag and reluctantly work on finishing Rose's project. Bono also observes that to some people, fences keep people out and push people away. Bono indicates that Troy pushes Rose away from him by cheating on her. Troy's lack of commitment to finishing the fence parallels his lack of commitment in his marriage. The fence has come to symbolize to Troy the fact that he's not going down without a fight. Troy declares that he'll resist death up until his last breath. In a lot of ways, Troy's struggle with Death humanizes him. When Troy completes the construction of the fence after this

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Troy and Cory

    • 508 Words
    • 3 Pages

    The story, “Fences,” is a play written by August Wilson. The book won winner of the 1987 Pulitzer Prize for drama. The main characters are Troy Maxson and Cory Maxson. Some ways they are both similar, is that they both hate one another, and they are alike. Some ways they’re different is that Troy likes baseball, while Cory likes football. Also they both did things opposite. Troy went to jail, while Cory went to the marines. Even though Troy and Cory are similar in some ways, they are different in many ways too.…

    • 508 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The idea of the fence has a number of symbolic meanings in the play. You have Troy’s baseball, Raynell garden, and the fence. This play focuses on the symbol of a fence which helps readers receive a better understanding of these events. “Fences” symbolizes a great struggle between the literal and figurative definitions of humanity and blackness. Of course, this fence is much more than just a fence – it's a complex symbol that pretty much sums up the whole play.…

    • 641 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Eng15 Fences

    • 1382 Words
    • 6 Pages

    The play Fences by August Wilson revolves around the front yard of the main characters Troy and Rose Maxson between the years 1957 and 1965. Rose is a long, responsible mother, wife, and friend who tends to show forgiving and selfless character traits. Many of her words and actions also show that she is a strong and assertive yet tender woman. Her husband Troy, on the other hand, is pretty much her opposite. Troy’s character is very dominant. He is and imaginative and boastful person who mostly comes off as selfish and bitter. Within the eight years, which the play takes place, Rose and Troy find themselves in a tragedy. Troy’s character changes between Act I and Act II, however, both his and Rose’s character are responsible for the tragedy.…

    • 1382 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Troy's Fences

    • 513 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Troy connects with every character because Rose is the one that wants the fence built and Troy is the one building it. Troy, a 53-year-old head of household who struggles with providing for his family (Wilson, August) . Troy wants the fence built so everything he love can stay in it and everything he hate like death to stay on the outside of the fence until he get ready for it to come on the inside. In act (2.2) Troy was having a talk with death telling death to stay away from his family and when death is ready to come death needs to come for him.…

    • 513 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    fences Troy

    • 532 Words
    • 2 Pages

    On page 77, Troy talks to death because he is angry that he is falling apart from his family. ”Alright...Mr. Death. See now...I'm gonna tell you what I'm gonna do. I'm gonna take and build me a fence around this yard. See? During this part of the book, Troy and Rose just finish an argument and troy feels like he is not doing a good job protecting his family. So he says that he is going build the fence to show to his wife that he still wants to protect her and his children.…

    • 532 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Rose is using metaphors to express her true self to Troy: “I planted a seed and watched and prayed over it. I planted myself inside you and waited to bloom.” (Wilson 501). Rose uses the word “seed” in the metaphor in relation to Troy. This inspires hope in her: she hopes the seed will bloom and she hopes Troy will bloom into the man she wants him to be. Rose’s metaphor shows how she nurtures and protects life. Using the words “watched and prayed” shows that she is a nurturer that wants the best for her family. Using the phrase “waited to bloom” included Troy in her metaphor because she was waiting for him; this showed her desire for joint collaboration in their partnership. Metaphors are allowing troy to understand her, while she is screaming and releasing all of her rage. By showing Rose’s nurturing personality coupled with her metaphor for joint partnership she revealed herself to Troy and they were able to understand each other’s…

    • 466 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Troy from Fences is very outspoken, opinionated, and proud. Troy’s characteristic as to being proud and accepting towards his economic status is one major difference between Richard and himself. Troy and Richard both are low income and struggle to get ahead. While this is a similarity between them the way they handle these situations is where they differentiate. Troy uses his deprivation of things to push him to obtain more and progress. The readers sees this when Troy says’ “Right now, as soon as I get two hundred and sixty four dollars, I’m gonna have this roof tarred.”( Wilson 33) Troy shows no hesitation to provide the fact that his roof is leaking and no shame in providing the fact that he can't afford to pay it at the time. On the other hand…

    • 842 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Fences Character Analysis

    • 756 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Fences by August Wilson is a dramatic and powerful play about Troy Maxson, a hard, gruff man, who has had to learn to survive in a world he does not understand. Growing up, Troy had an awful example of a father. He ran away from home at the age of fourteen, and had to find a way to live even though he had nothing. Now a father himself, Troy finds himself becoming as angry and hard as his father, although he has only ever tried to be a responsible man. Lyons, Troy’s oldest son from his first marriage, is the opposite of Troy. A struggling musician, Lyons’ fatherless childhood condemned him to be an irresponsible dreamer who believes in a future of liberation.…

    • 756 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the play written by August Wilson's, “Fences”, we see the significance of the fence throughout the play. The fence is a symbol which means something more meaningful then it appears in the play. The play actions and choices the characters make depends on the situation of the fence and how its current situation is . Rose the one who wants to break the curse of the men of her family who constantly cheat. She believes the fence will keep the loved ones in and the undesired out. The fence symbolizes her love for her family and her attempts to keep it as solid as it currently is. However, the fence pushes away people at the same time. When Troy goes across the fence it pushes him to cheat on women while he is away from his family. Same thing for…

    • 372 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Fences 1

    • 672 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Rose is a 1950’s traditional housewife who has invested eighteen years of her life in her relationship with Troy, despite the imperfection of her husband, and in taking care of the family. To Rose, nothing is more important than the family. She recognizes that Troy and Cory, their son, do not see eye to eye. The father and son’s conflicts stemmed from Troy’s strong disapproval of Cory’s choice to be recruited and to play football in college in addition to Cory’s disobedience to the authority, Troy. Rose does not want the Maxson family to fall apart. She wants to have a fence built around her yard to protect her so that nothing can harm her and the unity of the family. The idea of a fence as a protection can be seen when Rose sings a song to herself.…

    • 672 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    When you read a book with a tragic end you think it ends with a sad ending right? Well that’s not quite right. Even though books and movies may end in tragedy it still has a happy ending to it. The book Fences is a prim example of how tragic ends in a happy ending. Rose in this case has moral reconciliation. She learns how to move on, forgive and see things different.…

    • 770 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    fences

    • 371 Words
    • 1 Page

    August Wilson 's Fences - Building Fences - August Wilson 's Fences - Building Fences The first time I read August Wilson 's Fences for english class, I was angry. I was angry at Troy Maxson, angry at him for having an affair, angry at him for denying his son, Cory, the opportunity for a football scholarship.I kept waiting for Troy to redeem himself in the end of the play, to change his mind about Cory, or to make up with Ruth somehow. I wanted to know why, and I didn 't, couldn 't understand. I had no intention of writing my research paper on this play, but as the semester continued, and I immersed myself in more literature, Fences was always in the back of my mind, and, more specifically, the character of Troy Maxson.... [tags: August Wilson Fences Essays]…

    • 371 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Fences Symbolism

    • 743 Words
    • 3 Pages

    For Troy the symbolization of the fence changes throughout the course of the play. One of the things the fence represents is Troy wanting to keep out death and the past he separates himself from. After Alberta’s death Troy tries to block death out by using the fence you can tell this by when he whispers "All right . . . Mr. Death. See now . . . I'm gonna tell you what I'm gonna do. I'm gonna take and build me a fence around this…

    • 743 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    The narrator complains of how his apple trees will never get across and eat his pine cones, meaning that he doesn't really see a need for this wall. The neighbor says “Good fences make good neighbors.” the narrator questions him “why?” without any empathy for the neighbors feelings. The speaker noticed that the neighbor…

    • 408 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    1) The fence is designed for keeping farmers on one side and the aboriginal people on the other side. The fence is a symbol for racial separation and the movie is called Rabbit Proof Fence because it's very important for directions and guidance back to Jigalong, and also because the tracker and the police uses it for their own purposes, but luckily Daisy and Molly travels along the wrong fence in the beginning of their quest for meeting back up with their mom.…

    • 910 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays