Teens reading Cat on a Hot Time Roof today might be surprised at how shocking it was considered when it was released. Tennessee Williams boldly explored themes that generally weren’t discussion in the 1950s - the exploration of unsettling family secrets, the revelation of social ugliness and darkness, the dissection of taboo topics that no one dared to mention. But what should really shock teens should be how the critical themes of gender roles, misogyny and homophobia are still applicable to today’s society.

Williams explores the roles of women through two characters - Big Mama and Maggie. Although on the surface the two characters seem to be very different, there are surprising similarities between them when taking a deeper look.

Big Mama, as Big Daddy’s wife, exhibits nearly all the stereotypes we might expect for a traditional woman who believes love is pure sacrifice. She takes care of family affairs as a hostess, she loves Big Daddy unconditionally despite Big Daddy’s hatred towards her as a wife, she shows utmost regards to her son as a maternal figure. Nevertheless, what she gives out is never reciprocating. Brick avoids talking to her by hiding in bathroom, Big Daddy directly claims his extreme despise towards her, calling her “old” and “fat” (40), and no one in the family seems to care about her feelings. Turning gradually from optimistic to desperate and finally broken, Big Mama evokes deep sympathy from readers and mirrors the pervasive struggles faced by women throughout the history - women were expected to show full dedication to their families and bear suffering silently without any complaints.

Although sharing similarities with Big Mama, Maggie seems to defy the constraints that are placed on women. As a social climber, she is more selfish and displays a greater emphasis on wealth rather than concern for her husband Brick. In addition, her ambition and assertiveness position her as a more masculine character in a more dominant position, seemingly reversing the traditional gender roles between Brick and herself as she aggressively fights for her rights and her property. Despite her masculinity, unfortunately, Maggie is still unable to break free from the shackles of stereotypes. She desperately yearns for Brick’s love, and as a beautiful woman, tries to use her beauty as weapon to melt Brick’s coldness, but this never works. Full of sadness and agony, she sarcastically refers herself as a “cat on a hot tin roof” (13), trapped by the challenge but is unable to escape.

Maggie’s unreciprocated love towards Brick parallels Big Mama’s love towards Big Daddy. Although facing a similar fate to Maggie, Big Mama doesn’t share empathy with Maggie and even demonstrates misogynistic attitudes towards fellow women. She accuses Maggie for not making Brick happy in bed, she considers Maggie’s childlessness abnormal and degrades women’s value into mere the ability of having children. Readers may be shocked by how submissive women are in front of the society’s misogynistic attitudes. Nevertheless, women themselves even internalize and perpetuate this falseness, using it as weapon against each other. However, this phenomenon is still prevalent in today’s society while people might be unconscious of. Just like the competition of the number of children between Maggie and Mae, women today usually compete for beauty, body shape, and other qualities they believe will make them more appealing to men compared to other women. Linking the experience of Maggie and Big Mama to women today, it is astonishing to observe the enduring influence of ingrained stereotypes on women, despite societal revolution.

As a homosexual author, Tennessee Williams himself recognized the pervasive plight of women, and he scornfully criticized the society’s rigid adherence to stereotypical and traditional gender roles. While the two couples of characters accurately reflect the gender norms during 1950s, some of these stereotypes still persist in contemporary society. Inspired by cat on a hot tin roof, we witness how this futile conventions gradually undermine family relationships and ultimately lead the play to a tragic ending. As contemporary readers who are more educated and critical towards traditions, it is imperative that we interrogate the inherent falsehood embedded with in traditional society and the status of women - for women, love should no longer be pure sacrifice, and their worth should be defined by themselves, not external forces such as the expectations of society or male gaze.