There’s a lot of Oscar buzz around Fences, a movie based on the play by August Wilson.  It centers on a middle-aged man named Troy and his family.  I found certain components of his story worth examining.  In the trailer, Denzel Washington (as Troy) tells his son to not worry about people liking him but instead be concerned about people doing right by him.  This gives a glimpse into to mind of Troy. He was an excellent baseball player at a time when African-Americans were under restrictions in the major leagues.  So despite his talent he was not able to make decent money and ended up as a garbage man barely keeping his family above water.  This instilled in Troy mistrust and he grew bitter with age.  So much so that when his son had the opportunity to go to college on a football scholarship, Troy was unable to support the opportunity as he was bitter and felt his son would be mistreated as he was. The powerful line for me is when Troy yells at his wife (played by the incomparable Viola Davis) that it is not easy for him to admit he’s been standing in the same place […]