What is a theme in the "Fences" that shows a dream?

Theme of the American Dream

Troy Maxson is the embodiment of an African-American generation, growing up in the post-World War II era, that finds itself finally able to realize the American ideal of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Troy has become more successful than his father, who remained a poor sharecropper and never owned his own land or property but, instead, paid all his wages and his life to an unjust land owner. Troy has bought his own house (though he feels guilty about the methods of payment). And in his sexual relationships he has embodied the freedom of a man to follow his own desires in a pursuit of happiness. Troy Maxson embraces his desire to be an individual.

This pursuit of the American Dream, however, is not without conflict. Troy cannot envision a generation doing more than his own accomplished. He cannot imagine his son achieving an even greater dream, and he cannot imagine a life unburdened by responsibility to family. In this way, Troy remains chained to his expectations of what a man can accomplish in the world.