Despite the fact I did not find the plot of Fences all that intriguing, I thought it served as an interesting example of character development using certain tools. So far in this class, we have not spent much time looking at different voices, and I thought the use of dialect served to not only give character distinction, but to highlight the racial and historical background of the characters. It was a character trait in and of itself, but it was also a signifier of a greater cultural context, that gave instant depth to the character just by the sound of it.
Other than that though, I thought the family dynamic was a bit stereotypical and two-dimensional. The father-son conflict was not flushed out enough, and they were both angry for the sake of being angry. I think this is interesting because it poses the question; how to go about creating something emotionally intense? I think there is a huge difference between something that causes emotional purging that is organic and interesting, and drama just for the sake of furthering the plot. Oftentimes I thought the characters were being overly angry or dramatic just because this was meant to be a dramatic play, and it was not realistic, nor did it make me particularly interested in the characters.
Maybe that was another issue I had with this play. I did not sympathize with any of the characters. For example, Troy was a grown man with the maturity of a 14 year old. He was self-pitying, and completely egocentric. I id not care what happened to him, and oftentimes pegged him as the antagonist. Meanwhile, Rose, his wife, I found to be a very nondescript female co-star. She was plain, yet strong at the essential times, but not in any progressive, intriguing way. I found her to be the typical female character that is needed in every play to counter balance the overly-aggressive male cast. The only character who had any originality, and I found any interest in reading about was Gabe, and even he was taken advantage of by every other character, which was just frustrating.
Overall, I thought the play was interesting, but cliché, and the characters gave off the illusion of depth simply because they were moody, when in fact, I think they were stereotypical and underdeveloped.
"I think there is a huge difference between something that causes emotional purging that is organic and interesting, and drama just for the sake of furthering the plot."
ReplyDeleteAnnie, if you know the answer to this, I believe that not only would you be an amazing playwright, you could probably solve most of the world's problems.
I agree with you on the emotional capacity of the characters, they certainly did leave much to be desired-but maybe that was the point? Too many grown men DO have the maturity of 14 year-olds. Perhaps Wilson was trying to make a statement about the world. Or maybe not.
In fact, though Alyson's proposal is a tall order, it's worth making two lists: 1) plays where the drama feels cheap and plotty and otherwise pointless and then 2) plays where the drama feels real, interesting, relevant, and revelatory. Then figure out what the difference is. What do they do to make you buy it when you buy it? And ditto when you don't.
ReplyDeleteHere, the stereotypes are part of the point I think. As with adaptations, that's the part we know going in (fathers and sons who don't get along this way, say); it's what the playwright does with it that's (potentially) interesting. One solution to your complaint here is to write entirely atypical characters. Another is to write entirely typical characters who then surprise us.
I definitely see where you are coming from, and I understand a lot of your feelings on this show, even though it's not my personal stance. However, I have to disagree with the fact that they were arguing for the sake of just furthering the plot. The motivation is quite clear as to why they are angry with one another. I agree with Aly, there are plenty of adults who act immature, so I do see this as something natural. The characters here may not stand out, but the play itself does work as a whole, I feel, and that's mostly because of the interactions. In all honesty this was a very real play, but I definitely understand why some people would find it underwhelming.
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