One of the main protagonists of the play “Fences” by August Wilson is Troy Maxson, the father of the Maxson family. He is 53-years old at the beginning of the play and works as a garbage collector. His family consists of Troy’s wife, Rose, and his two sons, Lyons and Cory. While Cory is a son from Rose, Lyons is a son from his previous relationship. Troy is a troubled and conflicted person and this affects his relationships with his two sons. His struggles are mirrored in the way he approaches them and their life decisions and aspirations.
Troy’s personality is based on two sets of values. The first one is his views on manhood, family, and responsibility. Those views are seen in the dialogue with his son Cory “Man is supposed to take care of his family” (Wilson, A., & Scott, 2014, p. 21). Troy’s sense of responsibility is enhanced by his decision to leave his house at the age of fourteen. Hence, he highly values responsibility, and this makes him skeptical of his sons’ pursuit of their dream careers. Lyons wants to become a musician, which is not a stable source of income, while Corey is good at baseball and even manages to earn a scholarship at college. However, when Lyons wants to loan ten dollars from his father, they begin to fight, and Troy tells him, “You living the fast life…wanna be a musician …running around in them clubs and things…then, you learn to take care of yourself” (Wilson, A., & Scott, 2014, p. 41). Hence, he wants his children to be responsible and independent.
The second of Troy’s traits comes from his background in the sport. He was a baseball player who was aspiring to become one of the great athletes. However, his dreams were never accomplished due to his age and segregation, which left him with bitterness and a sense of victimhood. Therefore, he rejects the dreams of his sons because his own dreams were not fulfilled.
Reference
Wilson, A., & Scott, S. (2014). Fences. Spark Publishing/SparkNotes LLC, a division of Barnes & Noble.