if you were about 20 years old now, think about the roles...

I don't know the fullness of your question, and I don't think I can answer on behalf of a society, but I've always felt that men are the traditional "bread winners" and women are the "house wives." I think this is how it was with my grandparents as it is an older type of mindset. This is by no means a condescending point of view, but just how I was raised. This is not to say that this is how it should be or the way it is, but it makes me feel comfortable to understand that as the norm. For example when I go on dates, I always felt responsible to pay for dinner and that sort of thing. I couldn't imagine going to some expensive restaurant, ordering a nice big steak and having my girl pick up the tab. This also by no means accounts for a whole society's point of view, but thats where I'm at if that counts for anything.