Every time he pushes someone away or denies the opportunity of others, he builds upon his fence. This fence keeps him naive as he fails to properly understand Cory's opportunity to play college football, resulting in Troy declining the coach's offer for Cory. Inevitably conflict arises between Cory and Troy because Cory believes "that was the one chance [he] had" (57). Wilson uses the conflict between Cory and Troy to create an enormous shift in Cory, from the subservient boy who wanted to live up to his father's expectations, to someone who is beginning to develop into his own individual. This is reflected by the incomplete fence (Cory the subservient boy), and toward the end of the novel, the symbolism of the fence being completed, completes the cycle of life and death. When the fence was being built there was new life, an immature Cory who sees football as his only chance to succeed, but over time as the fence became completed, it brings death; death of the immature Cory but also new life to a mature Cory who finds his identity through the Marines. This theme of building one's own fences leading to development over time can also be found in "Mending Wall" when the speaker questions "what [he] was walling in or walling out" (Frost). The speaker does not understand exactly why the wall is being built separating himself and the neighbor. .
However, what is being walled in or walled out is based upon the speaker. Within Fences, each character puts up their own fence to protect themselves, whether it is a fence to protect themselves from their insecurities (not making the professional leagues), or a fence to separate family and the outside world (Rose trying to unite her family), there is always something separating two areas from one another. This idea is crucial in understanding the conflict between the neighbor and the speaker, because while the speaker questions the "need" for the wall, the neighbor always falls back to saying "Good fences make good neighbors" (Frost).