John+Lo+--+Function+of+Dreams

//Not entirely certain about TS...not quite a statement yet...just a series of ideas. Discuss literary features. Avoid using text only as support for ideas. Dreams needs to be defined clearly. How is death a dream? Discussion seems to launch into general discussion about character. //

Thesis: In August Wilson’s __Fences__, the general function of dreams and how the dreams of characters reflect their personality traits and explains the reasoning behind their prejudice and their many actions that drive the plot forward with a focus on Troy.

**1. Wilson uses Troy's dream of playing baseball to show his stubborn, impulsive, and self-centered personality.** “There ought not never have been no time called too early!” (I.i.9) "Selkirk! That's it! Man batting .269, understand? What kind of sense that make? I was hitting .432 with thirty-seven home runs!" (I.i.9) Troy 's dream to play baseball was sadly destroyed by a more racist society that existed. Even though he had great scores in the Negro League, he was never given the chance to play in the Major Leagues because he was black. He still thinks that blacks will not be as successful as whites and has denied Cory a chance to become a famous athlete. He did not think that by denying a chance, he himself has become the white man who had denied him his chance 30 years ago. This decision shows his impulsive and self-cenetered nature. He believes that rascism still exists because he STILL isn't in the major leagues. His logic is impaired because he refuses to believe that he is too old and that he came too early to be accepted as a black athlete. Also, he thinks he can compete as well as he did in the Negro Leagues. This shows his stubbornness and explains why he makes certain decisions. ** 2. Troy's dreams about making money and his view on job positions show his dislike for whites and the rascism in society. ** "I can't stand niggers like that. He walking around with his shoes and all run over bumming money for cigarettes. Got lucky there and hit the numbers...Man brought him that restaurant down there...fixed it up real nice." (I.ii.22) Money and the type of job one is doing shows power. Troy says that a black named Pope won the lottery and started acting like a white man. When blacks went in to eat, they only had vegetables in their stew; however when whites went in, they had all the meat. This shows the racial tension between blacks and whites and also Troy's jealousy of Pope's money. He later on sends Gabriel to be locked up in the hospital in return for money. "Your daddy got a promotion on the rubbish. He's gonna be the first colored driver. Ain't got to do nothing but sit up there and read the paper like them white fellows." (I.iv.45) All the whites have higher positions in jobs. This shows the racist society and Troy's inclination to blame hardships on whites. **  "Death ain't nothing. I done seen him. Done wrassled with him. You can't tell me nothing about death...I ain't making up nothing. I'm telling you the facts of what happened. I wrestled with Death for three days and three nights." (I.i.10-12) Seeing death is not possible and is part of his imagination. This act of storytelling and Rose saying that the story is different every time shows Troy's tendency to lie or cover up things. This is hypocritical of Troy because he is the one who says that he tells the truth and that lying is bad. "Death stood up, throwed on his robe...had him a white robe with a hood on it." (I.i.12) Death is usually portrayed as evil and is wearing a black robe. But in //Fences//, Death is described has wearing a white robe in Troy's image of Death. This shows Troy's dislike and prejudice against whites and how he wants to fight back at them. Everything unfortunate that happens to Troy is blamed on whites and not on himself. **__Troy__****__’s Sons’ Dreams__**: LYONS: “I know I got to eat. But I go to live too…I just stay with my music cause that’s the only way I can find to live in the world. I just come by to ask you for ten dollars.” (I.i.18) “I told you Bonnie working.” (I.i.16) “Boy, your mama did a hell of a job raising you.” (I.i.18) Lyons’s dream of becoming a professional musician never came true, just like his father’s dream of playing in the MLB never came true, and now he finds himself playing as an amateur in clubs and bars. This job of his does not earn enough money for him and Bonnie. Lyons says Bonnie is working. This also shows him as a failure because typically the man should work to feed his family. It can be inferred that Bonnie earns more than Lyons. Unlike his father, however, Lyons has decided to keep working at a career he knows he will not make progress. Because of his decision to live in his unrealistic dreamy little world Troy calls “living the fast life”, there is an obvious tension created in the relationship between father and son à Troy is suspicious of Lyons coming just to ask for money. CORY: “Yeah, I had to go to football practice.” (I.iii.30) “I get good grades, Pop…You got to keep up your grades to get recruited. This way I’ll be going ot college. I’ll get a chance…” (I.iii.36) “Naw…naw. You getting your butt out of here and finding you another job.” (I.iii.36) “If you can’t do both…then you quit the football team.” (I.iii.36) “You damn right you are! And ain’t no need for nobody coming around here to talk to me about signing nothing.” (I.iii.35) Cory dreams of playing football professionally, or at least he plays football to help him get into college to study. He hopes to make his father proud by playing sports as Rose says, but Troy denies Cory the chance to do so, and does not agree to sign the papers. Because of this conflict, the father and son relationship becomes weaker and is prone to destruction. Later on, after Cory rebels against his father and strikes three times out, Troy kicks Cory out of the house. His father’s apparent reason for denying Cory the chance to play football is that he feels racism is still a strong force and that the “white men” will take everything away from Cory and deny him the chance to play. Also because he is jealous of the idea that his son could have more of a chance to be successful and become the dream that Troy had. This shows Troy’s self-centered and stubborn personality once again.
 * __ Troy  __**
 * 3."Death" is used in exaggerated stories to show Troy's hypocritical personality about honesty and also shows dislike for whites. He also tries to show off his manliness through this story.