Blog 7

The title “Fences” represents the story very well. Fences are both used symbolically and literally in the story, from the fences he builds between the relationships with people and the actual fence that is built in the main character Troy’s yard. The author August Wilson symbolically uses fences to represent the walls between the characters in the story. Troy has a fence up which is like his guard in every relationship he has with a person. Troy wants to keep out the things that he separates himself from but it does him more harm than good.

The reason why Rose wants a fence and the reason why it is symbolic is because, Rose loves her family and she wants to keep everyone together. “Some people build fences to keep people out...and other people build fences to keep people in.”  (Act 2 Scene 1 Line 26) she builds it to keep everyone together as a family. She attempts to keep her family inside the home. Troy, on the other hand, builds different symbolic fences of responsibility, and expects his sons to do so much and his expectations are so high that all these fences do is push people away.

Troy clearly builds the fence as a dividing line between him and his son an actual, physical barrier that separates them when in the story Cory says "Tell Mama I'll be back for my things” and then Troy says “They’ll be on the other side of the fence”. (Act 2 Scene 4 Lines 110-111)   By winning the fight with Cory, Troy in my opinion is trying to show him that he's still the and always will be the alpha male. While the fence is now a literal barrier between the two, it also is representing the emotional strain that Troy places between them.

Blog 6

Claudius: is he purely evil or is he merely a flawed human being?  I believe he is purely evil.  Claudius is a man who knows what he wants and he is not going to stop until he gets what he wants and is completely satisfied with it. In order to get what he wants he is willing to murder someone and to betray and deceive his own family and lie to his own country just to get what he wants, to be king of Denmark. Claudius has no remorse whatsoever about his actions with killing his own brother. I believe he is pure evil because he planned to kill his brother, he knew what he was doing. And he knew in order to become King of Denmark he must marry the Queen so that’s what he did. All for the title of King. He lied to everyone. He must have had everything all planned out and thought through which really shows how evil he is. And another way that he showed his pure evilness is when he said to Hamlet “In filial obligation for some term to do obstinate condolement, is a course of impious stubbornness, ‘tis unmanly grief, it shows a will most incorrect to heaven” (Act 1 Scene 2 Lines 91-950). He is telling Hamlet to stop mourning of his own father’s death and to get over it. Claudius has no feelings; he does not care about who he hurts. Claudius is a man who will go to great length and will risk everything to get what he wants.

Blog #5

Hamlet is upset for many reasons. Hamlet is angry and searching for revenge. He became very disturbed when he came to find out about his fathers death. He could not come to terms with it and he could not come out of the grief of his fathers death. His fathers death was a big shock to him and affected him a great deal. He was also upset at his mother and how quickly she became remarried, he could not accept that his mother married his uncle which further increases his problems and sadness."Like Niobe, all tears;- why she, even she,- O God, a beast that wants discourse of reason,Would have mourned longer,-married with my uncle, My father’s brother; but no more like my father Than I to Hercules: within a month; Ere yet the salt of most unrighteous tearsHad left the flushing in her galled eyes, She married. O most wicked speed, to post With such dexterity to incestuous sheets It is not, nor it cannot come to good, But break my heart,- for I must hold my tongue." (Act 1 Scene 2 Lines 149-158) This quote is very significant because it describes the causes of Hamlet's pain, how much he is unhappy with the intense disgust at his mother’s marriage. It broke his heart to know of his mothers new marriage.