Troy as a Tragic Hero

August Wilson's character Troy from his play Fences can be considered a tragic hero. Growing up and trying to achieve the American Dream as a colored person during the time period in which this play was set, can be a very difficult challenge. Troy's dream was to become a professional baseball player but due to his race he was unable to accomplish this. As a result, he takes this out on his son Cory when Cory gets a shot to play football in college. By holding his son back, Troy thinks he is saving Cory from hurt when actually Troy just hasn't realized that times have changed and that colored athletes have a better chance now. Troy worked somewhat hard for everything he had, except for the payout from his brothers accident. Troy viewed himself as hard working but a little piece of him was taken away when he couldn't play baseball resulting in resentment towards many things. Troy's tragic flaw is that he is a colored man during a time when these people were seen as "different" and as a result of this flaw can be viewed as a tragic hero. Troy wen from being an excellent athlete with a future ahead of him to a fall from glory when his dream of becoming a pro baseball player is crushed. As a result, Troy suffers everyday knowing that because of his race, he was not able to accomplish his American Dream.