Fences
...ken out the garbage and that he hasn’t done his chores. This makes Troy a responsible father because he is teaching his son to be responsible by making him do everyday chores. Every father should teach his son to be responsible because responsibility is very important in a person’s life. In addition to this quote, there is another quote which shows that Troy is being responsible. In act two scene one, Troy is having an argument with Rose about their marriage and there is a quote which shows Troy is being a responsible husband for eighteen years. “I stood on first base for eighteen years and I thought… well, goddamn it… go on for it!” (Wilson 1386). In this quote, Troy is telling Rose that he has been with her for eighteen years and on one else, but after the eighteen years he had another woman in his life. Troy is responsible because he took care of his wife for eighteen years and his been honest to her his whole life. Throughout the marriage, Troy supported his children and most importantly his wife Rose. Also, Troy is responsible because he has the guts to tell his wife that he had an affair with another woman and he knows that that is wrong on his part. In general, Troy is responsible because he took care of his son Cory and his wife for eighteen years. Secondly, there is another character trait that Troy exhibits and that trait is his bitterness toward his family. The critic, August Wilson, also sees this trait in Troy when he says, “Struggling through middle ages as a garbage man, Troy’s bitterness results in family conflicts” (Wilson 446). Wilson is saying that Troy struggled at his job as a garbage man and that resulted in Troy being a bitter man to his family, especially Cory. Troy had bitterness toward Cory because he didn’t sign his scholarship papers. This meant that Troy didn’t approve of Cory being an athlete just like his father. Also, Troy’s bitterness resulted in a secret affair with a mistress after being with his wife Rose for eighteen years. In act one scene three, there is a conversation between Cory and Troy and there is a quote from Troy which shows his bitterness toward Cory. “You damn right you are! And ain’t no need for nobody coming around here to talk to me about singing nothing” (Wilson 1367). In this quote, Troy is saying that nobody should come around the house asking him to sign any scholarship papers because that’s just a waste of time because he’s not going to sign them. Troy is bitter because he is taking a once of a life time opportunity away from his son Cory. He is blocking Cory’s chances of going to college and getting a good education while playing football. Most kids dream of having this opportunity that Cory has. In addition to this quote, there is another quote made by Troy which shows his bitterness toward his wife Rose. “I can sit up in her house and laugh. Do you understand what I’ am saying. I can laugh out loud … and it feels good. It reaches all the way down to the bottom of my shoes. Rose I can’t give that up” (Wilson 1385). In this quote, Troy is describing his feeling toward the mistress and how special of a woman she is. This woman takes Troy away from his responsibilities and makes him feel great in every aspect of live. Troy is bitter to Rose because he has been with her for eighteen years and now he is telling her that he feels more for this mistress. He tells Rose that after eighteen years of marriage and happiness there is someone else who makes him feel better. In general, Troy bitterness toward his family caused a lot of conflicts which affected all of his family members especially Cory and Rose. The last character trait that Troy exhibits is his stubbornness toward life and his family. The critic, Leo Savage, also sees this trait in Troy when he says, “Troy is absolutely stubborn in his conviction that he is always right, and he never stops taking his frustrations out on Cory” (Savage 269). Savage is saying that Troy is stubborn, especially when it comes to himself because he always thinks that he is right. When it came to Cory, Troy didn’t want Cory to be an athlete because he thought that he would end up just like his father. Troy did everything he could to stop his son’s chances of becoming an athlete. Another thing is that Troy had an affair with a mistress and he was right on his part because the woman made him feel special, but he was married to Rose for eighteen years. In act one scene four, where Cory is having a conversation with Rose about Cory playing football, there is a quote from Cory which shows Troy’s stubbornness toward Cory. “Papa went up to the school and told Coach Zellman I can’t play football no more. Wouldn’t even let me play the game. Told him to tell the recruiter not to come” (Wilson 1379). In this quote, Cory is telling Rose how Troy went to Cory’s school and told the coach not to play Cory and to tell the recruiter not to come because Cory is not playing football anymore. Troy is stubborn because he is blocking his son’s chances of playing football because Cory put down the job at the A&P. Cory put down the job because he is concentrating on school and football because he wanted to go to college. Troy th...
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by Buttstewey