Topic > The in-depth analysis of relationships in "Fences"

In the play Fences, by August Wilson, a fence represents protection and incomplete or broken relationships. Through the fence, Wilson is trying to show that even things that were once perfect and have gone wrong can still be rebuilt. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original EssayOne way Wilson uses the fence is to represent protection and love. A fence usually keeps the things people want and separates them from the things they don't want. A fence is also a separation between two or more objects or events. At the beginning of the show, the fence is broken, which means that the family has problems with relationships with each other. Troy and Cory have different points of view. Cory wants to play football and in order to play at his school he decides to stop working every day and only work on weekends. Troy disagrees and says that Cory is "a bigger fool" than he thought and that he needs to get his job back at the A&P (36). If Cory can't work and play soccer, he is told he will have to leave the soccer team. Troy said this to Cory because he doesn't want Cory to become a street cleaner like him or become unemployed. Troy uses the word “silly” because he tried to do the same thing when he was young. Troy is trying to help Cory understand that he doesn't want him to live the same way he had to. He does it for Cory's sake, but Cory doesn't realize it. Cory feels like his father is just trying to ruin his life and not let him have fun. This relates to the fence because even though Troy wants to repair the fence and keep it in good condition, it will always break again. This means that even though Troy might want something to happen a certain way, it might not always happen that way. At this moment in the play, the fence is bent and broken just like Troy and Cory's relationship. Wilson also uses the fence to represent incomplete relationships. Troy cheated on Rose and made their relationship incomplete. During this time, the fence breaks and bends just like their relationship. Troy ignored Rose and doesn't tell her he was seeing someone else until he got the other person pregnant. Overall, Troy caused his relationship with Rose to break down and fall apart. Rose feels that the only real person who cares about her and who would "stand as a barrier around her" every day is Jesus (21). She feels that because Troy is not good to her, the only person who can be a barrier to all bad things is Jesus. Troy's relationship with Cory is also broken because he also ignores Cory and is not there when she needs him. Not only does the fence represent broken relationships, but it also represents the regrowth of relationships. Rose and Troy are in a broken relationship because Troy cheated on her and had a baby with someone else. When Troy cheats on Rose, he tries to hide it from her, but when he finds out that she is having a baby with the other person, he tells her. Rose, however, does not divorce Troy because if she did, she would most likely be living on the streets. She would live on the streets because she would have no one to support her and she would have no income. Furthermore, she believes that if she hadn't married Troy, she might have been in an abusive relationship. Rose says she has known people who married someone who was abusive and even though Troy isn't the best husband, she realizes he isn't the worst either. When the baby girl, Raynell, is born, her mother dies during labor. Troy then asks Rose if she would like to raise the baby with him. When Rose agrees, she tells Troy, “This baby has a mother. But you, a man without a woman” (79). This means that she will no longer forgive Troy and will start caring about him