Family relationships are commonly discussed in many literary works to demonstrate different visions of this topic. Fences is one of such stories where the life of an African American family is thoroughly described, addressing the specific living conditions of Americans in the middle of the 20th century. August Wilson, the author of the chosen play, makes a wonderful attempt to look into a life of a black man with respect to the opinions developed by other people. Troy Maxson lives with his wife, Rose, his son, Cory, and his mentally ill brother, Gabriel, who returned from the war. Outside the house, Troy has a best friend, Jim Bono, and a son, Lyons, from the previous marriage. All these people have a certain impact on Troy, his behavior, and his decisions. The play depicts the challenges and struggles of the family to survive and use the reinforced fences that affect interpersonal relationships. In a variety of the offered themes and lessons, Wilson’s Fences contributes to a better understanding of how Troy’s idea of family relationships and responsibilities can be shaped and influenced by his wife, children, and friends.
When people think about an ordinary family, a fence symbol hardly comes to mind. Wilson attracts the reader’s attention from the very title of his play and proves that Fences can be a perfect story about family relationships. The Maxson’s live in “a derelict wooden house with boarded windows” and “the remnants of a fence” strewn in the yard (Wilson 8). In the movie, it is possible to focus on the house’s details and the main character’s attitudes toward the construction, its price, and even the placement of things that are never in perfect order (Washington). Troy is the head of the family; he earns a living as a trash collector and builds a new fence. Wilson gives an in-depth analysis of Troy as a man of exceptional “honesty, capacity for hard work and strength” (2). Despite his attempts to avoid conflicts and have a better life, the man is troubled by his unsuccessful baseball past and faces economic problems due to his imprisonment and racism (Steverson 140). Troy admits that he must do his best to survive by finding the strength to carry him to the next day.
Family relationships and responsibilities in the play are properly described through the evaluation of Troy and Rose’s dialogues, and the wife’s perspective affects the husband’s behavior in multiple ways. As a matter of fact, Rose knows Troy very well, “I know you like I know the back of my hand” (Wilson 33). Through Rose’s point of view, the reader gets an opportunity to learn more about Troy and his attitude toward his family, and the level of his responsibility. In response to his dissatisfaction with life challenges, she admits she also contributes a lot to their well-being: “I gave eighteen years of my life to stand in the same spot with you” (Wilson 96). This implies that their lives have not changed much for the 18 years they were married – they continue to experience the same problems and benefits together. However, the fact that they have lived the same life for many years proves that Troy was not able to break the fences of constraints confining him to the same place.
Another strong perspective that explains Troy’s concerns and dreams is the one developed by his sons, Cory and Lyons. Being a common man, Troy is presented as someone who prefers solidity other than hope. He believes that the new world is meant for those who are financially stable; thus, he does not “throw my money away out there in the streets” (Wilson 24). Although this philosophy about life temporarily protects his family against the dishonest life, it hinders them from reaching their full potential. Troy is not happy with the fact that his older son cannot find a good and well-paid job but follows his dream in the musical industry. However, he is a father who takes care of his child, even though the request to borrow some money provokes negative emotions. Troy has to support his boy because it is his responsibility, weather he likes it or not.
The reader can easily notice how Troy has managed to build a strong fence around his mind through his strict principles. The irony here is that while Troy seems to be recreating strong fences for his family by preventing them from developing, he fails to build real walls. At the same time, he warns Cory about “strike two. You stay away from around me, boy. Don’t you strike out. You living with a full count” (Wilson 99). He cannot neglect his responsibility to protect his children, but he is angry that his boys do not want to listen to him and rely on his past experience. His transgenerational trauma may end up affecting the future of the coming generations and make Troy the family home defender and a chief threat at the same time (Herren 11). Troy let his limits and the injustice of the past get in the way of his sons’ lives.
Finally, the idea of survival and promoting family support and cooperation can be easily understood through the occasional conversations Troy had with Jim Bono. The men follow a common philosophy of life: to do what it takes to win. Unlike other common men of his time, Troy’s life, despite being full of obstacles, has some meaning – he has a home and a family. Most importantly, he had a job at a time when most colored people could only dream of work. The fact that he could work together with his friend further reinforces his philosophy that it is only through hard work and getting a good job that one can gain love, family, and companionship (Gibson 67). Compared to Bono, who is ready to adjust to the offered living conditions and opportunities, Troy is not ready to go against the established norms. He feels that it is his obligation to live according to the rules set forth by society, and he has nothing to do but accept to live within his limits and expect others to follow the same way.
The injustices of the past, including poverty, wondering, betrayal, and racial discrimination, all contributed to Troy’s current status. He was a skilled baseball player during his young adulthood, and all the other characters in the play assumed he would make it to the major leagues (Wilson 54). When the reality came down on him that he could not continue chasing this dream, he was angry and bitter, and this continued to affect him and his family as a whole. The color of his skin confines him to the status of a common man, and there is nothing he can do to change his status.
At the same time, Bono is the character who motivates Troy and shows that his style of life has certain benefits. Bono respects his friend because “you done learned me a lot of things. You showed me how to not make the same mistakes… to take life as it comes along and keep putting one foot in front of the other” (Wilson 85). Although these relationships are as not blood-related as those with his wife and sons, Troy needs Bono to understand that his life has a meaning, and he succeeds as a husband, a father, and a man.
In conclusion, Wilson’s play Fences shows how complex but inevitable family relationships can be. The story successfully depicts not only the challenges American people faced in the 1950s but the burden of obligations black men had at that time. Through Troy’s life, the reader gets to understand the struggles a common man has to endure just to survive. Troy’s relationships with his wife, sons, and friends prove the necessity of building a fence. However, this activity is not that simple because, in his desire to protect his relatives, Troy cannot stop imposing limits on his family. Thus, the fences, as well as Troy himself, do not defend but create new threats. It is not enough for Troy to cope with poor living conditions, rebellious children, and personal needs. He is oppressed by the injustices of the past and a number of missed opportunities. Overall, Fences, strives to show how the life of a common black man can be damaged from the inside and outsides if wrong interpretations and judgments exist.
Works Cited
Gibson, Danjuma. “Fences/Moonlight/The Birth of a Nation.” Journal of Pastoral Theology, vol. 27, no. 1, 2017, pp. 67-69. Routledge.
Herren, Graley. “Stage Review of Fences.” August Wilson Journal, vol. 1, 2019, pp. 11–13. PLUMX.
Steverson, Delia. “Don’t Nobody Wanna Be Locked Up: The Black Disabled Veteran in Toni Morrison’s Sula and August Wilson’s Fences.” The College Language Association Journal, vol. 1, 2021, pp. 147–165. CLA.
Wilson, August. Fences. Dailyscript. Web.
Washington, Denzel, director. Fences. Paramount Pictures, 2016.