Troy Vs Society Conflict In Fences By August Wilson
Troy vs Society is the major conflict used by August Wilson in the play “Fences”. He uses the conflict of Troy vs Society to drive all the other conflicts and elements seen throughout the play. This is attested through Troy’s views of how he has either been treated in the past or how he handles ongoing situations from his personal experiences in life. August Wilson either faced similar conflicts himself or was wittiness to similar conflicts of Man vs Society growing up which is why he uses the conflict of Troy vs Society to drive all other conflicts and elements in the play. August Wilson would come to age around the height of the Civil Rights Movement starting during the 1950s and ending around the 1960s.
The play starts in the year 1957 with Troy and his best friend Bono discussing what Troy did at their job recently.
TROY: Ain’t said nothing. He told me to go down the Commissioner’s office next Friday. They called me down there to see them.
BONO: Well, as long as you got your complaint filed, they can’t fire you. That’s what one of them white fellows tell me.
TROY: I ain’t worried about them firing me. They gonna fire me ’cause I asked a question? That’s all I did. I went to Mr. Rand and asked him, “Why? Why you got the white mens driving and the colored lifting?” Told him, “what’s the matter, don’t I count? You think only white fellows got sense enough to drive a truck. That ain’t no paper job! Hell, anybody can drive a truck. How come you got all whites driving and the colored lifting?” He told me “take it to the union.” Well, hell, that’s what I done! Now they wanna come up with this pack of lies.
With the Civil Rights Movement in full swing, the playwright uses Troy as the voice for the African American people that work for the trash company. Years of oppressed African Americans working for the trash company only getting to lift and dump the trash never moving up in the company has Troy wondering why there are no African American drivers only White people driving the trucks. August Wilson uses this conflict of Civil Rights for African Americans as one of the battles with society Troy takes on. Troy most likely hears about and see’s change going on around him with the Civil Rights Movement and wants change for himself and the other African Americans working at the trash company.
August Wilson uses this conflict to capture African Americans challenging the treatment they were subject to and the processes it would take for change. With times changing and society drifting further away from the personal interactions of buyers and sellers from a typical mom and pop shop to a more industrial/corporate model. Troy would rather pay the higher prices since the owner of the mom and pop shop has taken care of him in the past and he would like to continue that relationship by shopping with Bella. Troy values personal relationships holding them close to his heart rejecting the changes to society in the form of saving a bit of money but losing the customer service.
ROSE: I ain’t said nothing about if she got fresh food. I’m talking about what she charge. She charge ten cents more than the A&P.
TROY: The A&P ain’t never done nothing for me. I spend my money where I’m treated right. I go down to Bella, say, “I need a loaf of bread, I’ll pay you Friday.” She give it to me. What sense that make when I got money to go and spend it somewhere else and ignore the person who done right by me? That ain’t in the Bible.
ROSE: We ain’t talking about what’s in the Bible. What sense it makes to shop there when she overcharge?
TROY: You shop where you want to. I’ll do my shopping where the people been good to me.
August uses conflict from his own during his life after he was kicked out of school and would continue his studies at public libraries also returning to the Hill District to be around and learn from the people he grew up with having personal relationships with them and an overall sense of belonging from the Hill District residents. Moving to a new neighborhood August lost all these relationships he sought after.
With Cory Troy’s son given the possibility of playing football in College Troy reflects on the treatment of African Americans during his life knowing that if his son were to play football that it would be a waste of his time since African Americans didn’t get the opportunities that White people did in sports. Troy would rather see his son gain a useful skill that he could build into a career of his own.
ROSE: Cory done went and got recruited by a college football team.
TROY: I told that boy about that football stuff. The white man ain’t gonna let him get nowhere with that football. I told him when he first come to me with it. Now you come telling me he done went and got more tied up in it. He ought to go and get recruited in how to fix cars or something where he can make a living.
TROY: I don’t care where he coming from. The white man ain’t gonna let you get nowhere with that football noway. You go on and get your book-learning so you can work yourself up in that A&P or learn how to fix cars or build houses or something, get you a trade. That way you have something can’t nobody take away from you. You go on and learn how to put your hands to some good use. Besides hauling people’s garbage.
August would go through a similar conflict in life when his mother wanted him to be a lawyer instead of a writer, she views the position of a lawyer to be more prestigious in society for an African American is that it was a skill that would provide him with a job rather than a writer which relies more on a fan base per say to become successful. Being that society didn’t think highly of African Americans she felt it would lead him to nowhere vise a job as a lawyer.
Troy had a sense that most people only wanted money and when people with no money fell into some money this changed them. Troy’s conflict with society is seen here by one of the people he knew that had won some money causing them to almost turn their backs on the black race by serving a heartier bowl of soup to a white man then giving the leftover scraps to his own people. His brother’s trouble also brings a battle with society when the local officials are continuously locking him up just so they can collect money for his release almost as if they are jailing him just to make money.
TROY: Had good sense, I’ll say that for him. He ain’t throwing his money away. I seen niggers hit the numbers and go through two thousand dollars in four days. Man bought him that restaurant down there . . . fixed it up real nice . . . and then didn’t want nobody to come in it! A Negro go in there and can’t get no kind of service. I seen a white fellow come in there and order a bowl of stew. Pope picked all the meat out the pot for him. Man ain’t had nothing but a bowl of meat! Negro come behind him and ain’t got nothing but the potatoes and carrots. Talking about what numbers do for people, you picked a wrong example. Ain’t done nothing but make a worser fool out of him than he was before.
TROY: Ain’t said nothing. I give them fifty dollars and they let him go. I’ll talk to you about it. Where’s Cory?
ROSE: He’s in there helping me clean out these cupboards.
TROY: Tell him to get his butt out here.
TROY: (to Bono) All they want is the money. That makes six or seven times I done went down there and got him. See me coming they stick out their hands.
BONO: Yeah. I know what you mean. That’s all they care about . . . that money. They don’t care about what’s right.
August Wilson could relate to this not through the way of monetary value but by the multiple awards he won with two of them being Pulitzer Prizes. Winning the Pulitzer Prize, in particular, might have changed the way August would think possibly give him the notion he was better than most African Americans, but August is quoted saying 'hasn't affected me. What it does is change the way people look at you, but it doesn't change the way I look at myself”.
At an early age, Troy leaves his home and is on his own. His conflict versus society starts at the age of fourteen being that young and only knowing the world around him he finds out the world is much bigger than he previously thought. This leads Troy to walk on a very long journey to his new destination once he arrives, he quickly figures out the only way to survive is to steal pitting him against society's failures to provide for him just so he can make ends meet. This lifestyle ended and Troy was shot and went to prison.
LYONS: That’s a heavy story, Pop. I didn’t know you left home when you was fourteen.
TROY: And didn’t know nothing. The only part of the world I knew was the forty-two acres of Mr. Lubin’s land. That’s all I knew about life.
August Wilson decided after a falling out with his mother it was time for him to grow up as well taking society and the world in which they lived head-on. August left his home and decided to join the army beginning his battles with society after taking a test for Officer Candidate School then being told he wasn’t old enough August decided he would leave the army to later return to Pittsburgh.
Troy is known as somewhat as a ladies man to Bono at the beginning of the story Bono hints to Troy as if he knows what is going on with Troy and another woman, with Troy playing it off like it’s nothing that he favors everyone alike even Bono. The conflict of having more than one woman especially outside of marriage is looked down upon in society. Bono confronts Troy about the situation later informing Troy he knows what he’s doing and doesn’t want to see anyone getting hurt by Troy’s actions.
TROY: You saying I don’t measure up. That’s what you trying to say. I don’t measure up ’cause I’m seeing this other gal. I know what you trying to say.
BONO: I know what Rose means to you, Troy. I’m just trying to say I don’t want to see you mess up.
TROY: Yeah, I appreciate that, Bono. If you was messing around on Lucille I’d be telling you the same thing.
With August Wilson having three wives of his own his father leaving at a young age and his mother remarrying another man. August knew what life was like dealing with women from society’s view of an unstructured childhood. His first marriage ending due to August unable to protect his marriage any longer to the second ending due to his obsession with his work and the third ending at death.
August’s three marriages aren’t of the norm in society, driving his conflict with society. Troy is questioned for the way he is handling his brother's situation. His wife believes that it would be best if Gabriel were to be put into a hospital where they could look after him and give him better care than he is receiving now. This conflict with society Troy has is that his brother fought in a war for his country and now they are wanting to turn their backs on him by locking him away in a hospital making it so he no longer has freedom the thing he fought for and was injured because of it.
ROSE: Well, I don’t know. Seem like that would be the best place for him if they did put him into the hospital. I know what you’re gonna say. But that’s what I think would be best.
TROY: The man done had his life ruined fighting for what? And they wanna take and lock him up. Let him be free. He don’t bother nobody.
One of August Wilson’s biggest battles in his own life as a writer was gaining acceptance by society, after years of unsuccessful attempts as a writer he got his big break when one of his plays made it to Broadway. Gabriel wasn’t accepted by society because of his condition, August wasn't accepted as a writer by society because his work wasn't good enough. Troy is subject to discrimination by society playing baseball he was considered by himself and maybe Bono to be a better ballplayer than most of the players playing today never getting an opportunity to prove how good he was even saying at his old age he could play better than most today.
TROY: What it ever get me? Ain’t got a pot to piss in or a window to throw it out of.
ROSE: Times have changed since you was playing baseball, Troy. That was before the war. Times have changed a lot since then.
TROY: How in hell they done changed?
ROSE: They got lots of colored boys playing ball now. Baseball and foot- ball.
BONO: You right about that, Rose. Times have changed, Troy. You just come along too early.
Having grown up in a predominately black neighborhood then moving to a white neighborhood August knew firsthand what discrimination was. After moving to a white neighborhood and being kicked out of his first school after being called a derogatory name and punching the student then at his second getting into a physical altercation with an abusive teacher and at his third being told he plagiarized a paper because it was too good August felt as if society was against him. Even saying at one point in life “he considered life a battle and that he learned early that society was lined up against you'.
References
- Anderson, S. (1990). CHRONICLE. Retrieved 27 July 2019, from https://www.nytimes.com/1990/07/19/style/chronicle-642590.html
- August Wilson | biography, plays, & facts. (2019). Retrieved 24 July 2019, from https://www.britannica.com/biography/August-Wilson
- August Wilson, Pulitzer winning playwright: Biography. (2019). Retrieved 25 July 2019, from http://www.august-wilson-theatre.com/biography.php
- August Wilson: The Ground on Which I Stand | Biography and Timeline | American Masters | PBS. (2015). Retrieved 27 July 2019, from http://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/august-wilson-the-ground-on-which-i-stand-august-wilsonbiography-and-career-timeline/3683/
- Civil Rights Movement (2019). Retrieved 26 July 2019, from https://www.history.com/topics/black-history/civil-rights-movement
- Green, S. (2018). August Wilson Married, Wife, Death, Bio, Career, Net worth, Divorce. Retrieved 25 July 2019, from https://celebsblurb.com/august-wilson-married-divorce-career-bio/#August_Wilson_Married_Life_and_Divorce_With_Ex-Wives
- Kershner, J. (2013). Wilson, August (1945-2005). Retrieved 24 July 2019, from https://historylink.org/File/10315
- Wilson, A. (2017). Fences. In L. Kirszner & S. Mandell (Eds.), Portable literature: Reading, reacting, writing, 9thed (pp. 1270-1331). Boston, MA: Cengage Learning. (Original work published 1998)
