Fences

Multicultural Lit

1st Block

Fences Essay

Langston Hughes once posed the question, “What happens to a dream deferred?” What is a dream? How does one go about making it come true? In the 1950s it was very difficult for African Americans to make any of their dreams come true because of segregation and all the other glass barriers in society. Those barriers are referred to as Fences, which is August Wilson’s book title. I will use three characters from the reading to show how their dreams were tainted. Cory, Troy, and Rose will be my points of reference.

In the beginning Cory, the son of Rose and Troy, wanted to be a big shot athlete like his old man. Rose argues to Troy, “He is just trying to be like you with the sports” (Wilson 2). Cory has the dream of playing college football and maybe continuing on with it. He desperately tried to get the approval of his father to play, but was consistently given a speech eventually ending in a series of No. Even though in the beginning he wanted to be like Troy, Cory slowly seen that he had to escape Troy’s grip and make his own decisions.

In the book Troy was the average hardworking man who wanted nothing but the best for his family. He also wanted them to know what hard work is and tried to instill the value of that into their mind, body, and soul. Troy expresses to his sons that things are not easily given. He lets them know you have to work hard for what you want in life. Throughout the reading, Troy lingered over his dreams of playing in the Major Leagues, but slowly realized that his dream is far from being true and in his past. In the end, Troy dies swinging the bat because his dream didn’t syrupy over all sugary and sweet.

Rose is the wife of Troy and the mother of Cory. She is the backbone of the family by far. If you take a glimpse into the 1950s, Rose is perfect example of what a wife should be. She was a loving woman who wanted a nice orderly home and life. All she ever wanted was the acknowledgement of...