Symbolism In August Wilson's The Piano Lesson

When Sonny plays the piano his brother “heard what he had gone through.. I saw my mother’s face again, and felt for the first time” (275) The narrator is reminded of the struggles he went through and relates back to

At the beginning of the play a group of people see the ghost but when the ghost

A recurring theme in American history has been that of the American Dream, the idea that anyone, regardless of race, can achieve success through hard work. In his stirring 1990 play The Piano Lesson, August Wilson uses African-American characters to embody the American Dream. Throughout the play, set in Pittsburgh in 1936, Wilson traces the economic successes of several African-American characters, such as Boy Willie and Lymon. However, Wilson’s portrayal of this apparent progress conflicts with the true historical setting. The reality between 1877 and the 1930s was that social barriers, such as Jim Crow laws and sharecropping, precluded economic progress for most African-Americans. A few black Americans such as Madam Walker, an Indiana businesswoman, made some progress, but in general there was stagnation in terms of pecuniary growth during this time period. August Wilson’s interpretation of African-American economic progress through fictional characters in The Piano Lesson is flawed because it represents a few economically successful African-Americans of the time, but fails to capture the lack of progress made by the majority between 1877 and 1930.

One of the ways Wilson begins to bring about the central message is by demonstrating how Berniece behaves around the piano. Berniece’s feeling of apathy towards the

The apparitions in this play are The Ghosts of the Yellow Dogs and Sutter. Both these ghosts have the motivation of revenge. Having two separate motives for the piano; Berenice values the piano's history while her brother, Boy Willie, wants to sell the piano and use the money to buy the land his family was enslaved on. The Charles family is being haunted by the ghost of Sutter, whose family once owned theirs. Sutter's ghost appears after he falls down his well and the cause could be the Ghosts of the Yellow Dogs, the spirits of the Charles family's ancestors. The ghost's appearance causes conflict within brother and sister to rise. Sutter comes back after his death as a ghost to avenge his murder and reclaim his piano. In act 1 scene 1, Berniece states, “Just go on and leave. Let Sutter go somewhere else looking for you”. Berniece thinks that Sutter's ghost appeared because her brother, Boy Willie, killed him. In reality, the ghost of Sutter just reminds Berniece about her family's history and the piano. The piano represents her family’s past, struggles, and history. Berniece cannot accept her family’s past and move on. “Mama ola polished this piano with her tears for seventeen years. For seventeen years she rubbed on it till her hands bled. Then she rubbed the blood in… mixed it up with the rest of the blood on it.” This shows

Playwright August Wilson uses dialogue to further develop characters in The Piano Lesson. Generally, the words used are simple. Double negatives appear many times throughout the play, especially accompanied by the word “ain’t” (Wilson 1503). The characters’ sentence structure does not vary much. Most sentences utilize the uncomplicated pattern of subject, verb, and a short predicate. Helping verbs and other small verbs are often not included, especially in questions. For example, Boy Willie asks Doaker, “Where your bottle?” (Wilson 1502), and later Berniece inquires, “What the sheriff looking for you for, Lymon?” (Wilson 1502). Some verb phrases are also grammatically incorrect. For example, Lymon says, “I done had good whiskey before” (Wilson 1502), and Boy Willie adds, “Lymon bought that so he have him a place to sleep” (Wilson 1502). Other times, the subject of the sentence is left out when it is clear who the verb’s antecedent is. When Boy Willie brings up Wining Boy, Doaker comments, “He come by here about a year ago. Had a whole sack of money. He stayed here about two weeks.

The beginning of the play starts with a soft, sweet, flute medley that announces Willy’s gradual trek home from Yonkers. This slow tune of confusion ends abruptly as Willy comes

wrote the play Fences about his life: the heartbreaking reality of racism in his own life and the

Boy Willie states, “Papa Boy Charles brought that piano into the house. Now I’m supposed to build on what they left me. You can’t do nothing with that piano siting up here in the house” (Wilson 51). If he sells the piano, Boy Willie will be able to build a life for himself. Berniece says, “Money can’t buy what that piano cost. You can’t sell your soul for money” (Wilson 50). She believes if they sell the piano, she risks losing part of her identity. With tender sentiment, Berniece relishes the determination of her ancestors to appreciate life and the love they had for one another in the face of slavery. Boy Willie says, “See, you just looking at the sentimental value…You can sit up here and look at that piano for the next hundred years and it’s just gonna be a piano” (Wilson 51). Berniece’s pertinacious refusal to part with the piano emanates from her sentimental devotion to it and the memory of her ancestors. Therefore, Berniece characterizes herself through the piano as it brings the beauty of the past generations to their lives (Wilson 50, 52). Boy Willie defines himself as an African American who declares his equality as a man and seeks to enhance his self-worth by becoming a land owner (Wilson 51, 94). Therefore, he values the piano for its potential to raise his personal quality of life through a financial gain. The significance of the piano resides in the differing viewpoints of each sibling.

Possession, the need to own some object, or some territory. When it boils down to it, nearly every sentient being has the need to possess in the end. In August Wilson’s play The Piano Lesson, A constant struggle for possession lingers. From a piano that has now become a family heirloom to land, the constant need to possess springs forth. The main symbol of the play, The Piano, lies among several others within distinct themes. Such includes: The struggle for racial equality, possession, and the supernatural.

Ghosts haunt this troubled family as well. Several characters see the ghost of Mr. Sutter, the man who probably murdered the father of Berniece and

We see in the story that the ghost of Sutter is still haunting the family, through the piano. At the same time the piano is a symbol of family history, it is also a link to the slavery that the family had to endure. It is only through playing the piano, not through some christian exorcism, nor by physically fighting Sutter that they are able to drive off the ghost of Sutter. Boy Willie says "Hey Berniece… if you and Maretha don't keep playing on that piano… ain't no telling… me and Sutter both liable to be back." (108) By continuing to play the piano, Berniece and her daughter can continue to keep these dark links to their past away. Just like Mama Ola tendered the piano and taught Berniece about it, Berniece can teach Maretha about the importance of

The tone that August Wilson uses is an approachable and lofty blend at the same time. To begin with the protagonist of fences, Troy is a mindful man whose dreams are obstructed, this makes him have confidence in self-made fantasies. The play first begins with an entertaining story about his struggle with a personified Death character.

In The Piano Lesson each central character learns a lesson. August Wilson uses plenty of symbolism throughout his play, the strongest symbol being the piano itself, representing the family's history, their long struggle, and their burden of their race. Throughout the play, the conflict revolves around the piano, and Berniece and Boy Willie's contrasting views about its significance and about what should be done with it. Berniece is ashamed and cannot let go of the past, or the piano, and Boy Willie wants to move his life forward, and use the piano to do so. Wilson portrays the 'lesson' of the piano as accepting and respecting one's past and moving on with one's life gracefully, through Berniece and Boy Willies contrasting actions and the

The main conflict of the play is the 137 year old piano, which holds the key to the family history. A history which is physically represented in the piano itself both by the spirit believed to be held within and in the many sophisticated carvings.