The 50's vs the New Millennium

August Wilson uses specific language to create the time period in his drama, “Fences”. The slang, the separation between races, and the submissive mentality of women all depict the 1950's. In today's society, people still use slang and there is a small amount of women who are just as submissive to their husbands, but overall there have been many changes over the years. The movie He's Just Not That Into You depicts the interaction between men and women in the new millennium very well. When comparing the two story lines, one could ask: can Wilson's drama take place in present day?

In “Fences”, Troy expected Rose to be okay with the fact that he slept with another woman and got her pregnant. Even though Rose was outraged, she still stood by her husband and raised the other woman's baby as if it was her own (Wilson 1594-1651). The roles of husbands and wives in the 1950's were pretty clear. The woman was to cook, clean, tend to the children and most of all, tend to the husband. If that was not enough, the woman was also expected to be submissive to her husband in all respects. What Troy did was inexcusable, but back then Rose only did what was expected of her.

For the most part, the modern day woman is independent, empowered, and will only perform “housewife duties” if she wishes. In the movie He's Just Not That Into You, Ben sleeps with another woman and admits it to his wife Janine. At first, Janine wants to make their marriage work but, as she finds out later in the movie, Ben has lied about smoking cigarettes. Even though hiding cigarettes from someone is not really a big deal, it makes one wonder what else could the other person be lying about (He's Just Not That Into You)? Instead of just living with it, the modern day woman would typically kick her husband out and ask for a divorce. Who could blame her? After all, no one wants to lie in bed every single night wondering about what is real and what is a lie.

Theoretically, “Fences” could take place in...