Fences by August Wilson Information

Fences by August Wilson

• When/Where does the play take place?

The play is set in the 1957 and later in 1965.  The place the play is set in is the dirt-yard and porch of the Maxson family's house in Pittsburgh, PA.

• What was going on in the US at this time point regarding politics, economics, sports, entertainment and technology? 

1957
In the 1950s the cold war had ended. Many people were not well off economically and lived very frugally. There was severe racism, severe sexism,  and fear of nuclear attack. Women had to enter the job market for families to send children to college. Inflation was a major issue in the 1950s. Consumer prices increased and there was slow economic growth. Television was relatively new in the USA in the 1950s. n economics, the federal spending was $76.58 billion and the federal debt was $272.3 billion. 

In sports, The Milwaukee Braves beat the NY Yankees 4 to 3 in the World Series. Boston won against the St. Louis Hawks (4-1) in the NBA Championship. Leonard Bernstein's "West Side Story" debuts on the Broadway and brings violence to the stage.  In Science, a temporary artificial heart was invented by Williem Kolff. In the late 1950s, the "Little Rock Nine" integrated Arkansas high school.

1965

In 1965, Rev, Dr, Martin Luther King, Jr., and more than 2,600 others were arrested in Selma, Ala., during demonstrations against voter-registration rules (Feb. 1). Malcolm X, black-nationalist leader, was shot to death at Harlem rally (Feb 21.) The U.S. Marines land in Dominican Republic as fighting persists between rebels and Dominican army (April 28.). Medicare, senior citizens' government medical assistance program, begins (July 1). Blacks Riot for six days in Watts section of LA; 34 dead,, over 1,000 injured, nearly 4,000 arrested, fire damage put at $175 million (Aug. 11-16). Power failure in Ontario plant blacks out parts of eight states of northeast U.S. and two provinces of southeast Canada (Nov. 9). In terms of economics  the federal spending was $118.23 billion and the federal debt was $322.3 billion. The unemployment rate was 5.2%. In sports, The LA Dodgers won the world series against Minnesota. In entertainment, Bill Cosby starred in 'I Spy' and became the first African American to headline a television show.

Citation:

http://www.infoplease.com/year/1957.html
http://www.infoplease.com/year/1965.html

Race and Racism

Having a darker skin tone has been conditioned in our head as bad since birth. Most people always wish to change themselves, to be another person, because of the way they look. Usually, "colored" people with "unmanageable" hair wish they had light skin and straight "easy to manage" hair. Society has conditioned children to believe that who they are, who they were born as is something they should be ashamed of, something they need to change. Having "white" skin and straight hair is seen as the guidelines to society. "White" skin and easily manageable, straight brown or blonde hair was conditioned as the norm. Since we were children, the "black" character was deemed as the bad guy and the "white" character was deemed as a hero.

Barbie dolls conditioned into the minds of kids that being white, having fair and light skin is seen as better. Also, having straight blonde or brown hair was the best thing and anything else would be frowned upon. These subtle techniques of brainwashing trained who didn't have light skin and fair hair to believe they were scum. It modified the way a child looked at themselves in the mirror. It made them want to be just like the "white". Society has influenced children to abandon their heritage. Everyone wants to know where they came from, who they are and why they are here. Heritage having been wiped out, causes people to only be a label  Humans are labeled with names such as Dominican, American, African like cows labeled to be shipped out.

Women feel racism in a different way compared to men. Women feel more pressure to fit in with their hair, skin, etc. Men are not subjected as much to discrimination as woman are. Men are usually seen as "sex hounds" and rapist. They are seen as people who only think about sexual intercourse and want to have sexual intercourse 24 hours 7 days a week. In terms of racism, "white" men are seen as successful, "black" men are seen as dirty robbers and scum, and so on and so forth. In the terrible philosophy of this world, the darker your skin the least chance you have of success and the more you will come to subject yourself to wishing you were "white" or lighter.

Woman are told that they are weak, that they cannot do something unless tested vigorously. Woman usually feel that they should look a certain way to be beautiful. From barbie dolls to examples in magazines, woman are subjected to more social and peer pressure about how they look, where they are from and who they are. Some women feel  A survey has been conducted defining that woman are more subjected to feel a type of discrimination than men. Don't discriminate, just be yourself.