Troy's selfish and self-centered behavior hurts his family members and causes them to suffer in "Fences".
Troy cheats on his wife which causes her pain. He actually gets another woman pregnant; after 18 years together, he thought he could be another man with a new woman. Rose is angry about the dreams and hopes that she gave up to be with him and to create a life for them. She agrees to raise the baby but says she won't be Troy's wife anymore.
Troy rejects his son, Cory, because the young man represents dreams that Troy couldn't fulfill. He doesn't want him to play football; he says he doesn't have to like him just because Cory is his son. He ultimately kicks Cory out of the house. Cory goes on to find success in life but is still angry with his father after Troy dies.
Troy also hurts his brother. He wants money and signs his brother to an institution. Gabe's checks will go to Troy and to the hospital. However, at his brother's funeral, Gabe still hopes that Troy will be able to go to Heaven.
Troy hurts others and is an instrument of their suffering. He is never able to show others how much he loves them, and he hurts them with his ways. For example, his wife, Rose, is a loving person who has dedicated herself to Troy, but he has an adulterous affair with Alberta that produces his daughter, Raynell.
In addition, Troy does not really accept his sons, Cory and Lyons. Cory wants to play football in college, but Troy believes it's a white man's game and fights his son on this decision, causing Cory to run off and join the army. Lyons wants to be a jazz musician, but Troy also ridicules him, and Lyons leads a shiftless life. Finally, Troy also commits his brother, Gabriel, to a mental institution. After Troy's death, however, most of the characters forgive Troy, knowing that he was contending with racism and fear.
Troy's behavior is a direct cause of suffering for his wife, Rose, and his son Cory. In a less direct way, Troy also causes suffering on the part of his son Lyons and Troy's brother, Gabriel. Troy behaves selfishly and never considers that he might be wrong, and this causes the other characters grief.
Troy's affair with Alberta causes Rose to suffer emotionally. When that affair leads to the birth of a daughter, Raynell, and Alberta dies in childbirth, Rose suffers even more; she agrees to raise a child her husband had with another woman. Troy's cheating hurts and embarrasses Rose.
Troy's demand that Cory focus on work instead of the possible future he could have as a football player causes Cory to suffer. Though Troy is trying to prevent Cory from experiencing the same disappointment he himself experienced with baseball, Cory feels that Troy is taking a bright future away from him, and their already strained relationship is further damaged by this conflict.
Though Troy's son Lyons is following his dreams of being a jazz musician, he does occasionally need to borrow money from Troy, and Troy does not treat the situation delicately or discreetly. Rather, he uses Lyons's request as an opportunity to condescendingly lecture him about the choices he has made in order to pursue music.
Finally, Troy's brother, Gabriel, who fought and was injured in World War II, suffers due to Troy's behavior. Specifically, Troy uses some of the money Gabriel received from the government to pay for the Maxsons' home. Due to his mental state, Gabriel is not seemingly aware of what Troy has taken from him, but it does affect his life nonetheless.
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