What does Fences say about themes of fatherhood, family and responsibility? What elements of the play (hint: think Aristotle's elements) enforce that Wilson's play is about African-American life more than Universal Man? How does Troy Maxson set up the direction of the play’s plot; what events does he reference or allude to that will create a struggle for him throughout the course of the play? What comments made by Wilson or the Interviewer on the PBS video were most intriguing or surprising to you and why? Do you think the interviewer "get's" what Wilson is saying by the end of the interview? Did what August Wilson say in his interview relate to you and your experience in the world? How effectively did Wilson's play create a realistic set of characters and situations? What specific scenes or moments could you most relate to? After reading the play and watching the clips, would you want to see this play in production, why or why not?

What is imagery in a play? o o o o a figure of speech that makes a comparison between two different things a literary device that uses vivid language that appeals to the senses a figure of speech in which objects, such as trees, have human attributes a literary device that uses things like animals to express abstract ideas

Read the following scene from trifles. sheriff (chuckling). married to the law. (moves toward the other room.) i just want you to come in here a minute, george. we ought to take a look at these windows. county attorney (scoffingly). oh, windows! sheriff. we’ll be right out, mr. hale. (hale goes outside. the sheriff follows the county attorney into the other room. then mrs. hale rises, hands tight together, looking intensely at mrs. peters, whose eyes take a slow turn, finally meeting mrs. hale’s. a moment mrs. hale holds her, then her own eyes point the way to where the box is concealed. suddenly mrs. peters throws back quilt pieces and tries to put the box in the bag she is wearing. it is too big. she opens box, starts to take the bird out, cannot touch it, goes to pieces, stands there . sound of a knob turning in the other room. mrs. hale snatches the box and puts it in the pocket of her big coat. enter county attorney and sheriff.) county attorney (facetiously). well, henry, at least we found out that she was not going to quilt it. she was going to—what is it you call it, ladies! mrs. hale (her hand against her pocket). we call it—knot it, mr. henderson. what changes might a director or screenwriter make to the original version of this scene in order to best emphasize the mood? cut dialogue from the scene to make it a more appropriate length update the setting to appeal to a more modern-day audience omit the actions of the characters to avoid confusion and chaos include the use of lighting, camera angles, and sound effects

Read the excerpts from "the royal house of thebes" and "the story of a warrior queen." "we are women," she told her sister. "we must obey. we have no strength to defy the state." "choose your own part," antigone said. "i go to bury the brother i love." "you are not strong enough," ismene cried. "why, then when my strength fails," antigone answered, "i will give up." she left her sister; ismene dared not follow her. —"the royal house of thebes" again and again the romans were defeated, till it almost seemed as if the britons really would succeed in driving them out of the country. boadicea herself led the soldiers, encouraging them with her brave words. "it is better to die with honor than to live in slavery," she said. "i am a woman, but i would rather die than yield. will you follow me, men? " and of course the men followed her gladly. —"the story of a warrior queen" how are the archetypes presented in these two passages different? the first passage shows antigone as a warrior, and the second passage shows boadicea as a tragic heroine. the first passage shows antigone as a tragic heroine, and the second passage shows boadicea as a sage. the first passage shows antigone as a rebel, and the second passage shows boadicea as a warrior. the first passage shows antigone as a villain, and the second passage shows boadicea as a sage.