Choose a significant short passage from Fences that captures the essence or theme of this work. You may choose dialogue, a descriptive passage, or a narrative excerpt. First, cite the quote, and then briefly (in one sentence) explain its relevance to the meaning of the work.

There are different passages you could choose from Fences by August Wilson. I picked the passage below as a model for you. In act 1, scene 1, lines 227-229, Troy says the following:

Death ain't nothing. I done seen him. Done wrassled with him. You can't tell me nothing about death. Death ain't nothing but a fastball on the outside corner. And you know what I'll do to that!

Though your assignment asks you to summarize how this quote relates to the theme of the play in one sentence, I'll do so in a few sentences.
In this passage, Troy speaks about his relationship with death. He feels that death is something that he can conquer, much like a fastball that he hit as a superlative baseball player in the past. He believes that he will be able to conquer mortality. This passage relates to the themes of the play because Troy tries to keep death at bay but is ultimately unsuccessful in doing so, as he dies by the play's end.