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- Set in Pittsburgh in the 1950s, Fences explores the experience of one black family living in the era of segregation and a burgeoning black rights movement, exposing, at the heart of its characters’ psychology, a dynamic between the inner world of a black community and the expanse of white power around it.
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The setting of August Wilson’s play Fences is a crucial element in understanding the story’s themes and characters. The play is set in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in the 1950s, a time when racial tensions were high and the Civil Rights Movement was gaining momentum.
- Origins of Troy Maxson
- The Setting Reveals The Man
- Building Fences
- Troy's Porch and Homelife
- Baseball and "Fences"
- Troy The Garbage Man
According to Joseph Kelly, editor of " The Seagull Reader: Plays," Troy Maxson is loosely based upon August Wilson's step-father, David Bedford. The following can be said about both men: 1. Talented, young athletes. 2. Unable to attend college. 3. Turned to crime for income. 4. Killed a man. 5. Spent decades in prison. 6. Married and settled down t...
The set description provides several clues to the heart of Troy Maxson's character. "Fences" takes place in the front yard of Troy's "ancient two-story brick house." The house is a source of both pride and shame for Troy. He is proud to provide a home for his family. He is also ashamed because he realizes that the only way he could afford the house...
Also mentioned in the setting description, an incomplete fence borders part of the yard. Tools and lumber are off to the side. These set pieces will provide the literal and metaphoric activity of the play: building a fence around Troy's property. Questions to consider in an essay about "Fences": 1. What does the act of building a fence symbolize? 2...
According to the playwright's description, "the wooden porch is badly in need of paint." Why does it need paint? Well, in practical terms, the porch is a recent addition to the house. Therefore, it could simply be seen as a task not quite finished. However, the porch is not the only thing in dire need of attention. Troy's wife of eighteen years, Ro...
At the beginning of the script, August Wilson makes certain to mention an important prop placement. A baseball bat leans against the tree and a ball of rags is tied to a branch. Both Troy and his teenage son Cory (a football star in the making - if it wasn't for his embittered father) practice swinging at the ball. Later on in the play, when the fa...
The final details mentioned in the setting description reflect Troy's later years as a hard-working garbage man. August Wilson writes, "Two oil drums serve as garbage receptacles and sit near the house." For nearly two decades, Troy worked from the back of the garbage truck alongside his friend Bono. Together, they hauled junk throughout the neighb...
- Wade Bradford
August Wilson’s play Fences, the sixth of his ten-part “Pittsburgh cycle,” examines the aftermaths of slavery and discrimination of Black people in America, the cycle of damaged Black manhood, and the choice between pragmatism and illusion.
Literary Period: Black Urban Realism. Genre: Tragic Comedy, Drama. Setting: Pittsburgh’s Hill District in the 1950s. Climax: The climax of Fences occurs when Cory tries to fight Troy with a baseball bat, enraged at the way his father has always treated him and at his betrayal of his mother, Rose.
SETTING: The setting is the yard which fronts the only entrance to the Maxson household, an ancient two-story brick house set back off a small alley in a big-city neighborhood. The entrance...
Oct 3, 2024 · Fences by August Wilson is set in the 1950s in an African American neighborhood in Pittsburgh. The plot centers around Troy Maxson, a former baseball player who now works as a garbage...
August Wilson introduces his audience to the primary conflict in Fences at the very beginning of the play. All the characters are introduced in Act 1, and their interrelationships are explained...
