Summary of The article “Fences Criticism” written by August Wilson
The article “Fences Criticism” was written by August Wilson, and it focuses on a 53-year-old African-American man whose name is Troy Maxson. Troy was imprisoned in his early twenties for killing a man who he was trying to rob to support his wife and young son. It is while in the prison that Troy learns that he can be a good baseball player, and when he was freed, he tried to become a professional player. The author states, “He first learned to play baseball in prison, where he served a 15-year term for knifing a man to death in an attempted robbery.” (351)
However, since the major leagues were not admitting blacks, Troy could not play professional baseball. When later the major leagues started admitting blacks, he was deemed to be too old to play professionally. The story was based on Troy to show how African-Americans had little opportunities, and therefore, they had to struggle to survive. Despite only two players, Babe Ruth and Josh Gibson hitting more runs than Troy, he could not play in the major leagues. When Jim Bono remarked this to Troy, Troy said, “What it ever get me? Ain’t got a pot to piss in or a window to throw it out of” (350). This showed his frustration about not getting a chance to play professional baseball because he was black.
Analysis
After reading the article, I think the article was really persuasive on making readers believe the reason why African Americans had limited opportunities and their experiences in a white-dominated society in the 20th century. Through this article, Wilson demonstrates that America’s history had been stained by racism, and it took African-American warriors like Troy. It also showed that the traditional mythology of baseball must make room for the new and revolutionary mythos. This means African-Americans were not getting enough opportunities like Americans in every sector.