SECTIONB (NON-AFRICAN DRAMA) AUGUST, WILSON: Fences Consider Raynell's contribution to the pilot.

Answer Details

In August Wilson's Fences, Raynell is the daughter born to Troy Maxson by his mistress Alberta, who dies giving birth to her. Although she appears only late in the play, Raynell makes an important contribution to its plot and meaning.

Fruit of Troy's infidelity

• Raynell's birth is the direct consequence of Troy's affair with Alberta. Her arrival forces Troy to confess his adultery and shatters his marriage to Rose.
• Troy brings the motherless baby home, and his plea, that she is innocent and needs care, tests Rose's charity.

Rose's redemption and growth

• Rose agrees to raise Raynell as her own, saying the child is fatherless and womanless but not so; the baby will have a mother.
• In taking in Raynell, Rose shows generosity and strength, and her decision marks the reordering of the household on her own terms rather than Troy's.

Symbol of innocence and new life

• Raynell represents fresh, blameless life growing out of Troy's sin, a sign of hope and continuance after his failures.
• Her small garden and her growing up embody the idea that new life carries on despite the fences and disappointments of the older generation.

Reconciliation in the final scene

• Years later, on the day of Troy's funeral, Raynell meets her half-brother Cory, who has refused to attend.
• Together the two children sing the old blues song about Troy's dog "Blue" that their father used to sing. This shared song softens Cory's bitterness and helps reconcile him to his father's memory.
• Raynell thus becomes the link between the past and the future and the means by which the family finds a measure of peace.

Conclusion

Though a minor character, Raynell drives key developments: she exposes Troy's betrayal, occasions Rose's noble decision, symbolises innocent new life, and finally helps bring about the reconciliation and healing with which the play closes.