How Does August Wilson Build Fences

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August Wilson uses the symbol of a fence in his play. Troy has built "fences" around himself from anger, bitterness, and self-hatred. The use of fences is a symbol for the barriers Troy has put between himself and others. Throughout the play, Troy has been neglecting the fences construction which is why it takes so long to be completed. Troy draws his two sons away from him because he criticizes and neglects them. Troy pushes Lyons away by refusing to hear him play his music. He also ruins his relationship with his other son, Cory, by preventing him from playing football and rejecting his only chance to get recruited by a college football team. Therefore, you could say that the neglected fence is a symbol of Troy's neglect of his family. …show more content…
It takes Bono to make Troy realize that Rose wants to hold on to him. Rose gives everything she has to Troy, including her entire life and love. Yet, Troy is in no rush to build any type of fence. He doesn't like the confinement of a fence since he already lost a large portion of his life in prison and he isn't ready to be locked up again. Fences contain too many restrictions for Troy, the biggest one being marriage. Although he claims he loves Rose, he can't stand to be in an exclusive relationship with her because he feels too trapped. However, he manages to find a gate to that fence. The neglected fence symbolizes Troy's neglect towards his family because instead of working on the fence, he goes to the place known as …show more content…
Rose wants the fence built to hold in her loved ones. To Rose, a fence is a symbol of her love and her desire which indicates that Rose represents love and nurturing. While Rose tries everything to hold her family up, Troy wants nothing but the opposite. Troy thinks the fence is a burden and reluctantly works on finishing Rose’s product. Bono indicates to Troy that Rose wants the fence built to protect her loved ones as he says, “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” (page 59). Furthermore, Troy ruins his marriage by cheating on his wife, Rose, by having an affair with another woman named Alberta. However unlike Rose, who strives to build a fence around her family, Troy attempts to evade capture in the fence. He doesn't have the capacity to understand that Rose wants to keep the family close because he never truly had a close family. As a result, Troy ends up driving everybody away just like his father. He becomes known as a "womanless man” (Page 78). 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 appears finished only in the final scene of the play, when Troy dies and the family
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