Wrote by August Wilson in 1985 Fences, presents some aspects of the lives of African Americans in the United States. This play Encapsulates the different struggles people of color faced before and during the 1950s. Wilson illustrates the African American culture, racial division in the country, and how discrimination influenced their views on race, family, and their dreams and other. Cultural setting, life span
August Wilson created a realistic cultural setting in order to wrap the Audience.
Using the African American dialect as the one of the cultural aspect Wilson placed the views into a specific time in history. It also, indirectly, establishes the economic and social status that each of the characters have. Wilson places the audience into a different time in history pertaining to African American. Even though this is a fictional play the author makes sure to incorporate a timetable of some of the most important event in African American history. Troy became the storyteller of the difficult time many people of color endured for years in the United States.
The simple approach that Wilson takes when unfolding Troy’s life experiences and the interaction between him and his family could make any family especially blacks families relate to. Troy tells the story about his father being a farmer working in Mr. Lubin land this was common practice in the south and how he’s father didn’t know how to do anything other than work the land (1327). This was the only type of work that many African American knew or were able to obtain in the south.
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In that same scene Troy talks about how he left the south to the northers states to realize that things weren’t that different than from the south. He explained that “not only couldn’t you get a job… you couldn’t find no place to live. I thought I was in freedom” (1329). He witnesses how “colored folks” (1329) were living on the stress. In this part of the play Wilson try to create the picture of the deplorable condition and the hard time many African American were still sustaining even after obtaining their freedom. He also talks about segregation.
By the 1950s several racial motivated changes had happened in the United States, even though some progress has been made for many African American like Troy this didn’t help heal the scars from the many years of oppression they suffered. It clear that Troy was stuck in the past and he couldn’t see the new course the country was taking (1309). This is an aspect that Wilson presented multiple times during the play. Segregation was something that impacted Troy’s generation in a deep way.
This created to some extent a sentiment of distrust towards “whites” and the idea that they have the power to not let people of color sucess. One example of this is the scene where Troy and Cory are talking about Cory being recruited by a college football team and Troy tells Cory “the white man ain’t gonna let you get nowhere with that football noway (1321). The pace to fix the racial division in the country was slow but by the mid 50s segregation was found unconstitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court (Lewis, 2019). The true is that this didn’t improved the life of African Americans. Another major thing that was happening during the 50s was the Civil Right Movement.
Wilson presented this idea of the fight for equal work rights at the beginning of the play. In the conversation Troy and Bono were talking about the prosses to I ain.t worried about them firing me. They gonna fire me cause I asked a question? That’s all I did. I went to Mr. Rand and asked him, “why? Why you got the white mens driving and the colored lifting?” Told him, “what’s the matter, don’t I count? You think only white fellows got the sense enough to drive a truck”. That ain’t no paper job! Hell, anybody can drive a truck. How come you got all whites driving and the colored lifting?” He told me “take it to the union.”(1306)
Troy wanted for all the black garbage man to have the same opportunities as the whites did. Troy obtained the promotion and became a driver. “At the time when America was fighting for equality and freedom abroad, Black Americans were fighting for the same rights in the same country” “After years of discrimination, they viewed fighting in the war as an opportunity to prove their worth to their country” (Gallagher, 2014).
During the play Wilson touches a variety of theme
Troy’s views were heavily influenced by the discrimination that he was surrounded throughout his life. Based on Troy’s believe that because segregation he wasn’t capable to fulfill his dream to play in the MLB was the reason for him to stop Cory from accomplished his dream of playing football. This decision cause some of the animosity between Troy and Cory. It seems like Troy was trying to protect his son from affliction and disappointment that he when through.
Troy saw life like a baseball game.
Metaphoric speaking white people-built fences around the black community to keep them out of their community. As a result of Troy challenging the status quo on why only white man could drive but black couldn’t, Troy broke down of the “fences” that his white employer had built when he got the driver position.
