Themes are an important part of any story. They impart lessons on the reader, help the reader understand the writer’s views on certain topics and in general just make a story more well-rounded. This essay will take a look at what I think are some of the most important themes in Fences by August Wilson.
One of the major themes of Fences is racial discrimination and prejudice. This is one of the most obvious themes of the play, and it drives the entire plot forward. If racial discrimination was nonexistent, then Troy Maxson would have had more options and could have become a professional baseball player like he wanted. Even if he couldn’t make it as a professional baseball player, he could have still gotten a better job than the one he has now, or at the very least be supported by the union. Troy likely wouldn’t have gotten into a fight with Cory if there was no racial discrimination, either, since Troy wouldn’t have had any reason to tell the coach that Cory couldn’t play on the team.
I believe another theme of the play is generational trauma. This is clearly seen between Troy’s father, Cory and Troy himself. Troy was physically and emotionally hurt by his own father in the past, and people repeat what they know, so he unwittingly puts his own family through the same things. Much like real generational trauma, many who continue its cycle do not realize what they are doing until it is too late. Troy may have had good intentions in sabotaging Cory’s ambitions with the football team, but it effectively ruined their relationship, and the only reason Troy says Cory can’t follow his dreams is because Troy himself feels like the unjust society he lives in has made his dreams unattainable.
The cycle of abuse is an important topic both in the play and in real life. We see this abuse cycle most clearly between Troy and the rest of his family. As stated in this paper before, Troy enacts the same abuse on his family that he himself went through as a child. While the society you grow up in has a big impact on your psyche, it is also your parents that play a big role in how you see and interact with the world. If Troy had loving and supportive parents then he could have become a much different person, and with that in mind it can be surmised that if Troy’s father had a happy well-adjusted life before Troy was born, he may have been a good father and husband.
Fathers and fatherhood play an important role in the story of Fences. Troy is desperately trying not to become like his father but ends up being his mirror. Much like his father, he fights his son, and much like his father he drives his wife away with his infidelity. Cory wants to be different from his father as well, and at the moment he seems to be succeeding in this goal with help from his family. In the end though, only time will tell if he’ll truly become like his father. Being successful in a career may help, but it won’t erase the effects of your childhood.
Family is also an important theme in Fences, and it’s easy to see its influence all throughout the work. Almost every theme outlined in this essay has been related to family in some way. Despite how dysfunctional the family in Fences is, they still seem to care for one another. Rose, despite refusing to be Troy’s loyal wife after the betrayal, still takes Raynell in as her own daughter and raises her even after Troy’s death. Despite being taken to an institution, Gabriel still tries to open the gates of heaven for Troy, and Cory ends up attending Troy’s funeral in the end.
As you can see, Fences has many different themes that can be seen in its text. While racial discrimination is the root cause of many of the problems in the show, many of the themes relate to family, and specifically a dysfunctional family dynamic. The racial inequality is the cause, and the broken family is the effect. I believe that this is a good play in showing how societal constraints can cause trauma and have repercussions that last generations.