Three Girls in 2020

     Three Girls by Joyce Oates was written in the year of 1956. I asked my parents, and they compared Marilyn Monroe in the 50's to our modern-day Scarlett Johansson. That was their first idea, and whether or not that's accurate I couldn't exactly say. But, they are movie stars, and somewhat sex symbols. So what would happen if Scarlett Johansson was hiding her identity in a famous New York bookstore in 2020?

    Well to start things off, there is absolutely no way ScarJo could hide her identity. With paparazzi and overwhelming fans, I'm sure the actress has trouble leaving her house without being identified and bombarded. If it was difficult for Marilyn in the 50s to go to a bookstore, it is not even comparable how hard it is for celebrities now to run a simple errand, let alone over sexualized actresses. 

    But, to say that maybe Scarlett did make it into the bookstore without being seen, what would happen next? Well, like the two young poets saw right through the boyish clothes of Marilyn, Scarlett would definitely be seen. Although, I don't believe young girls would give Scarlett the same respect that Marilyn recieved in that bookstore. Anyone in our society will do anything for 15 seconds of fame, and I could already see the tweets, TikToks, and snapchats now of a video of Scarlett Johanson in the poetry section. Followed by a video taken saying 'hi' to the actress, and finally a selfie with her. That respect given to Marilyn in the 50s would be out the door in 2020. I think that even though young girls, like the poets, would respect Scarlett's identity and not want her to be objectified, they wouldn't be able to resist a quick picture to show off.

    But, let's say that the young girls did respect Scarlett's privacy throughout the entire bookstore. They didn't overwhelm her with requests, they didn't take videos from afar, they didn't whisper to other shoppers. There is no way that they would offer to pay for her books. Sure, that sounds nice on paper, but books are expensive. Marilyn bought I think 13 books in that bookstore, and that would be well over $100 today. Maybe others are completely selfless unlike myself, but I would not pay for a millionare's books, I don't even have a job. This may just be me, but the realism that was displayed in Three Girls is not extremely realistic now.

    In the end, none of it would even matter. As soon as Scarlett Johansson stepped out of that bookstore fans were already waiting on the sidewalk because of the other shoppers tweeting her location from afar.