Fences Blog

I think Troy embodies the characteristics of a sympathetic villain. Throughout Fences, Troy works to support his family and look out for them. While Troy is a hard worker and a good employee, his fault lies in being a father and husband. Troy is often consumed in his work and the idea of money that he becomes estranged from his own family. In a response to Cory, Troy’s youngest son, when he asks for a T.V., Troy declares, “Right now, as soon as I get two hundred and sixty-four dollars, I’m gonna have this roof tarred.”  Troy’s response is odd as he states an exact amount of money which is unusual for someone to say in a normal conversation. His statement of an exact amount of money shows his inner insecurity of money. Troy puts up a shield of toughness throughout Fences to protect him from being vulnerable and getting hurt. Troy’s history of racism with baseball crushed him, causing him to be torn and damaged due to his dream being taken from him. Troy's rough past is frequently mentioned throughout fences whether through a refrence to his struggles with racism in baseball or his abusive father. At one point, Troy speaks to Bono and Lyons about his father talking about he abuse he was forced to endure ultimately leading to him leaving home at 14. When Troy said, “and when my daddy turned to face me, I could see why the devil had never come to get him… cause he was the devil himself,” he uses the metaphor of the devil to describe how horrible his father was. Scenes such as the monologue about Troy’s father and Troy’s unfortunate disadvantages with baseball cause the audience to feel sympathy for Troy after realizing the past he had to endure. However, Troy’s villainous behavior comes when he cheats on his wife Rose with Alberta. The sheer betrayal of a warm character, Rose, causes the audience to dislike Troy and view him as a villain. Additionally, Troy’s decisions relating to his son Cory’s football career could be interpreted as wrong. For example, Cory is a great football player with a potential scholarship to play in college, but Troy tells the football coach Troy is not playing anymore and has the scout leave. Single-handedly, ending Cory’s football career to “protect him” as Troy says is controlling and emotionally abusive. Troy further abuses his son by treating him with no affection and acting as if he is a responsibility that he has to take care of. However, I personally believe Troy still loves Cory and the rest of his family even if he doesn't directly show it. For example, when Cory comes back for Troy's funeral, Raynell mentions Troy continued to call the bedroom Cory’s room possibly holding out hope is son would one day return home. Troy puts up a hard shell to protect himself because the last time he loved something and showed it, baseball, he got hurt. Overall, I believe that Troy is truly a loving man who has been hurt by his troubled past and only wants to protect and look after his family.