The newcomer immigrants brought their own cultures and traditions with them, so they created conflicts in the society. For instance, Stanley and his friends are immigrants and they are trying to acquire social status. As a result, today low-skilled and low-waged black worker population outnumbers the skilled white populace. So, there is an attempt to make the city "whiter" and raise the economic level. If the difference between these social classes were not obvious, such a conflict could not occur between Blanche and Stanley. Today, New Orleans preserves its multiracial structure, but it is consolidated.
The time shift would also affect the perspective of people on gender roles. Firstly, the male chauvinist idea of "Man is the King" has changed. In the time of the play, men were the ones who were working at heavy-labor jobs and earned money for the household. So it caused men to see themselves as a superior gender. So, women were used to be the inferior gender. In 1940's job opportunities for women were limited, whereas today, a great variety of jobs are available for them just as equal to men's. However, women used to depend on marriage in order to have economic security. The play is based on the male dominance in male-female relationships. For instance, Blanche seeks for an adequate man to get married and make her living. Blanche has "got to court the favor of hard ones" and "run (men) for protection" (pg 53). She wants to get married with Mitch not because she's in love with him but for her economic security. If Blanche lived today, marriage wouldn't be the only solution to insure her finance. Also, the society's perspective on women's roles and expectations from women has changed. For example, women who were not married over 30's used to be called "old maids". So, Blanche strives to get married to raise her social status. Women gained reputation and support from men via their attractiveness and outlook.
The Vietnam War was a much-protested military move, producing the hippie movement and other cultural revolts. ... Marlon Brando, enigmatic and virile, sported similar designs in the 1951 movie A Streetcar Named Desire. ...