Boy Willie
E865352
Boy Willie is a determined, impulsive young man in August Wilson's "The Piano Lesson" whose desire to sell his family's heirloom piano to buy land drives the play's central conflict over legacy and ownership.
Statements (47)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
dramatic character
ⓘ
fictional character ⓘ |
| ageGroup | young adult ⓘ |
| appearsInMedium | stage play ⓘ |
| appearsInWork | The Piano Lesson NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| associatedWithCharacter | Lymon NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| associatedWithObject | haunted piano ⓘ |
| associatedWithSetting | Charles family house in Pittsburgh ⓘ |
| associatedWithTheme |
economic empowerment
ⓘ
legacy ⓘ memory and history ⓘ ownership ⓘ |
| centralConflictIn | The Piano Lesson NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| characterTrait |
determined
ⓘ
impulsive ⓘ outspoken ⓘ pragmatic ⓘ stubborn ⓘ |
| conflictsWith | Berniece over selling the piano ⓘ |
| contrastsWith | Berniece NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| createdBy | August Wilson NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| dramaticFunction | protagonist driving the plot’s action ⓘ |
| firstPerformanceYear | 1987 ⓘ |
| friendOf | Lymon NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| gender | male ⓘ |
| hasFamilyHeirloom | Charles family piano ⓘ |
| hasFamilyName | Charles NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| hasLineage | descendant of enslaved Charles family ancestors ⓘ |
| linkedToHistoricalTrauma | family history of slavery ⓘ |
| livesIn | Mississippi NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| motivatedBy |
desire for economic independence
ⓘ
desire to buy land ⓘ |
| nationality | African American ⓘ |
| occupation |
farmer
ⓘ
watermelon seller ⓘ |
| opposesViewOf | piano as sacred memorial ⓘ |
| partOfCycle | Pittsburgh Cycle NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| relativeOf |
Doaker Charles
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Maretha NERFINISHED ⓘ Wining Boy NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| seesPianoAs | means to purchase Sutter’s land ⓘ |
| siblingOf | Berniece NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| symbolizes | a forward-looking approach to Black progress ⓘ |
| timePeriodOfAction | Great Depression era NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| viewsAs | piano as a resource to be converted into land ⓘ |
| visits | Pittsburgh NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| wantsToSell | family piano ⓘ |
Referenced by (1)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.