Harvey Fierstein's five-scene one-act play On Tiding Endings uses as its main theme the oppressive structures of roles and sexuality in society and their impact on individual lives. Marion, a heterosexual woman, and Arthur, a gay male, are brought together by the death from AIDS of Marion's ex-husband and Arthur's recently deceased male partner, Collin. The conflict begins immediately, as Marion shows insensitivity toward homosexuality when asking Arthur how could she tell her son, "[your] father is leaving his mother to go sleep with other men" (Fierstein 1988). Arthur becomes sarcastic, when Marion says she is keeping her ex-husband's high school yearbook, "Sure. I'm onl
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