Blog Entry 7

There are many things in the story that caused the characters to not be able to do certain things due to a barrier or a fence. There are situations or accomplishments that the characters wanted to do or desired to do and love to do but couldn't because of other priorities that were at hand.
Troy was supposed to be a professional baseball player. He was in the Negro League but was unable to join the Major League. Being a black baseball player at that time wasn't being accepted especially in the Major League. That was a fence that Troy had to experience. He wasn't able to play in the Major Leagues because of the fence that was put between whites and blacks. The community and society as a whole built up this fence separating white people and black people. Being segregated with whites going to a different school as blacks or drinking from a different water faucet was making this fence stronger so Troy was not able to pursue his dream due to this barrier or fence. This fence even brought trouble to his job where he couldn't be  a garbage man and driving a truck instead of handling the trash. He did win the case however which broke one of the fences that was built.
There is a fence that separated Troy and Cory being father and son. Cory is in the process of being recruited by a college to play football. He wants to continue playing high school to be recruited but his father Troy isn't allowing it. He wants to have Cory continue working at the grocery store which he currently quit working at so he could play. Troy even says "Your first chore is to help me with this fence on Saturday" (1, iii, 25). To me, Troy doesn't want his son to be able to do things that he wasn't able to do himself. This fence is getting into their relationship as father and son but it is also conflicting with Cory's future which he has a great deal of succeeding at. I believe that Troy is jealous of his son. That Cory is given this opportunity of succeeding and living the life that Troy wasn't able to do. Troy feels this resentment and jealousy over his son. But it also could be where Troy is so used to having this fence up of segregation with society so he believes it will always be like that and his son will not be recruited because of his color and is therefore making sure that his son is working so he can make money. Rose also sees this change of when society back in Troy's lifetime is different from Cory's current one by saying. "Times have changed from when you was young, Troy. People change. The world is changing around you and you can't even see it" (1, iii, 118).
I also believe the meaning of fences in the play comes from Troy and Bono building this fence for Troy's wife Rose. She admits that she is building the fence to keep her family close. She knows that her family is being torn apart and she is doing everything to keep this family together even by raising the baby that Troy had with another woman who passed away during childbirth. This family is dealing with my fences and that fences for this play's title suits well.