Vogel: Black & White

There is no such thing as gray area and no one knows this better than the magnificent playwright Paula Vogel. Unfortunately, there are many people who are too blind to see this truth. They blur their minds with details that are deemed important when in reality they just don’t matter. In the plays “How I Learned to Drive” and “The Mineola Twins,” Vogel explores the most controversial extremes of today’s society, ranging from homosexuality, abortion, and sexual promiscuity. Interestingly enough, Vogel does not provide us with any answers, just questions: Who really is right in our society? And who has it all wrong? It’s up to us to decide. Vogel doesn’t make this easy for us though. She loves juxtaposition and masters it flawlessly. She makes all the characters who represent the extremes in society look just as ridiculous as the characters representing the polar opposite view. I think the point Vogel is trying to make is exactly this: if we concentrate too much on one element, no matter if we couldn’t be more right; we just end up looking absurd. People just need to accept others and realize that everyone is different and if they choose to live their lives in a way that is different than how we would, than that only makes sense. People enjoy complicating their lives; I must admit to being guilty of doing so myself. At the same time, we need to be capable of stepping back from the overwhelmingly colorful hectic world we live in and just see things how they really are: black and white.