Psychology is the study of the human mind and behavior. In psychology there are for parenting styles. They are Authoritarian, Authoritative, Permissive, and Uninvolved. I believe that the best parenting style is Authoritative. This parenting is more involved. They explain rules and punishment. They are open to conversations and questions. In“Fences” by August Wilson we learn that the type of parenting Troy Maxson exhibited was the Authoritarian style.
We also explore the minds and behaviors of Troy and Cory Maxson. Is their relationship a strain on them alone or does it affect everyone around them? How, if at all, is their conflict resolved? According to Kendra Cherry, a child dealing with an authoritarian parent generally leads to an obedient and proficient child. However, they rank lower in happiness, social competence, and self-esteem. In 1960, the American Psychiatric Association did a study where parents had to take on the roles of their children; to try and understand where they come from.
Why they can’t accomplish this it proves to them, that sometimes its not as easy being an adolescent that parents believe it is. (Authoritarian Parents and Disturbed Children, Aponte, Adams, Schawb) parents tend to say things like “you have no bills to pay, what do you have to sress about. ” They fail to realize that bills are not the main focus of their stress, therefore it wont be the main stress of ours. Troy Maxson is the father and main character of the play. His relationship with his son Cory was unlike his relationship with his son Lyons.
Troy didn’t want Cory to be in sports and exhibited the Authoritarian type of parenting. Forcing him to quit the team and have a job (no ands, ifs, or buts, about it). However, with Tory’s son Lyons, he was on the border between authoritative and permissive. Tory would voice his opinions about Lyons choices and what he felt Lyons should do. Yet, Troy always let Lyons do what he wanted, or gave him what ever he wanted. I am sure that took a tool on Cory; however as I go on I will explain more about the effect of the parenting.
In an article “Knowing Yourself and Your Child by Rosenthal, she states that the parenting style of authoritarian has two main components. The two components are responsiveness, or how much independence you’re willing to grant, and demandingness, how much strict obedience you require. The conflict there is that either way you lose. There has to be a balance of the amount of independence you grant and the amount of obedience you require. The conflict in “Fences”, was that Troy knew neither. He stopped allowing Cory to play sports, taking away his independence and forcing strict obedience on him.
Cory had to get the job Troy wanted him to get, be home when Troy wanted him to be home, and after all the the strict demanding the relationship took a serious turn. An estimated amount of 1. 6 million adolescents run away from home each year in the U. S alone. (Adolescence 266) Their parents maybe drug addicts or alcoholics, but most likely they are overbearing, controlling, authoritarian parents. The conflict is normally blamed upon the huge generation gap between parent and adolescent. The adolescent becomes increasingly, and dangerously distant.
Research shows, that the minority of adolescents have a 20 percent -25 percent high conflict and majority is moderate or low conflict (Adolescence 263). How many times do you listen to your parent say “when I was young we weren’t allowed in the same room as our parents and their company and be able to speak. ” I’m sure 99. 9 percent of the time. Due to the time in which most parents were raised, they believe in manners, and certain ways of behavior. However what they fail to realized , is that time has changed. Parenting has changed, and sadly it is now babies raising babies.
