Read the following words of the playwright August Wilson; then, choose one of the questions below to explore in your final blog comment (about 100 words).
“I think it is important that we understand who we are and what our history has been, and what our relationship to society is, so that we can find ways to alter that relationship and, more importantly, to alter the shared expectations of ourselves as a people. The suffering is only a part of black history. What I want to do is place the culture of black America on stage, to demonstrate that is has the ability to offer sustenance, so that when you leave your parents’ house, you are not in the world alone. You have something that is yours, you have a ground to stand on, and you have a viewpoint, and you have a way of proceeding in the world that has been developed by your ancestors. It was James Baldwin who called for a “profound articulation of the black tradition,” which he defined as that field of manners and rituals which sustains a man once he has left his father’s house. And I said,” Ah-hahh! I am going to answer that call. I am going to show that this culture exists and that it is capable of offering sustenance. Now, if in the process of doing that, you have to explore the sufferings of black America, then that is also a part of who we are. And I don’t think you can ignore that because our culture was fired in the kiln of slavery and survival…I think my plays are a testament to the resiliency of the human spirit. And that no matter what, we are still here, the culture is still alive, it is vital, and it is as vibrant and zestful as ever. ..Theater asserts that all of human life is universal. Love, Honor, Duty, Betrayal belong and pertain to every culture or race. The way they are acted out on the playing field may be different, but betrayal is betrayal whether you are a South Sea Islander, Mississippi farmer, or an English Baron. All of human life is universal, and it is theater that illuminates and confers upon the universal the ability to speak for all men.” —August Wilson
- What “sufferings of black America” do you think August Wilson effectively places on stage and explores in the course of Fences? What aspects of the play in performance struck you as most able to “offer sustenance” to its black American audience?
- What aspects of the play – its characters and their relationships, its themes, or its incidents – struck you as particularly profound (i.e., penetrating; offering deep insight or understanding; of deep meaning; pervasive or intense) in terms of their articulation of the black tradition/experience? Why did you find them to be profound?
- Remind yourself of the meaning of resilience/resilient. In what ways might the story of Fences be viewed as a testament to the resiliency of the human spirit? Are there any characters in the play that you see as particularly resilient? Where do you think his or her resiliency comes from? Are there any characters in Fences that seem to be non-resilient?
- Define what the word “universal” means or implies. What do you think Wilson means when he says, “it is theater that illuminates and confers upon the universal the ability to speak for all men?” Can you express his overall meaning in your own words? Do you agree with his assertion? What aspects of Fences—its characters, their relationships, its themes, or its incidents—struck you as particularly “universal”?
