Critical Discourse Analysis of Racism in August Wilson’s Fences
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.51699/ijllal.v2i12.3172Abstract
Criticizing literary work reveals important messages for readers. August Wilson, in his masterpiece "Fences," has utilized symbolism and metaphor about racism to illustrate the struggle between whites and blacks in the black community. This research criticizes racism in August Wilson’s play "Fences" by applying CDA to the dialogues of Troy. Racism is the discrimination, antagonism, or prejudice by a certain community institution or individual against another individual or individuals based on their ethnic groups, especially the groups that are usually minorities. August Wilson's play Fences depicts the burgeoning black rights movements from 1954 to 1968. Fences was written in 1985, but it nevertheless perfectly captured the 1950s way of life. Wilson adhered to postcolonial theory while exploring a variety of subjects, such as racism, marriage and faithfulness, manhood and masculinity, practicality and idealism, and manhood and masculinity. During the Black Urban Realism literary movement, which spanned 1954 to 1968, the characters depict black neighborhood life. Wilson uses the fence as a symbol for the struggle amongst Troy Maxson's family members throughout the play. In light of Troy's speech, applying CDA to Wilson's Fences will help shed light on the causes of the disputes and divisions. By analyzing the dialogue in Fences qualitatively, this research shows how August Wilson has utilized the Blacks to explore more general themes of race, class, and gender as well as to point out how the Blacks are denied their freedom and rights.
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