Susan Glaspell's Trifles

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Trifles by Susan Glaspell was written in 1916, a time in which women did not have rights and their roles were to be the loving housewives. Women were to be seen and not heard because men thought women only quivered over small “trifles”. Women were meant to take care of their house and families without any complaint or thoughts about their own happiness. In today’s world women have all the same rights as men and free to do and say what they please. However, people today as well as back then still have the same beliefs that women are fragile human beings that only worry about “trifles” and are incapable of committing any sort of crimes, whether it be anywhere from simple theft to a gruesome murder. Ultimately, this belief contraindicates…show more content…
This is shown consistently throughout Trifles. In the beginning, Mrs. Peters points out to the County Attorney that Mrs. Wright was worried that her fruit would freeze and that the jars would break and make a mess. Meanwhile, this was right after she was being accused of killing her own husband, Mr. Wright. The County Attorney comments that, “I guess before we’re through she may have something more serious than preserves to worry about (Glaspell, 747).” In response to this, Mr. Hale says, “Well, women are used to worrying over trifles (Glaspell, 747).” Glaspell is making fun of the fact that even in times of peril, women still let their minds wander and worry about things that are not necessarily important at the moment. Mrs. Hale looks through Mrs. Wright’s cupboard to see if any of her fruit was still good because of how upset Mrs. Wright would be that all her hard work over the summer had went to waste (Glaspell, 748). Later in the play, Mrs. Peters and Mrs. Hale come across a quilt that Mrs. Wright had been working on. Mrs. Hale says, “It’s log cabin pattern. Pretty, isn’t it? I wonder if she was goin’ to quilt it or just knot it? (Glaspell, 750). Glaspell is pointing out that while, even in their search for evidence against Mrs. Wright, the ladies are worried about how she was going to finish her quilt that she had been working…show more content…
Mrs. Hale sticks up for Mrs. Wright’s house being out of order due to the fact that a farm wife has a lot of responsibilities. To which the County Attorney responds, “Ah, loyal to your sex, I see. But you and Mrs. Wright were neighbors. I suppose you were friends, too (Glaspell, 747).” The County Attorney is insinuating that Mrs. Hale is only sticking up for Mrs. Wright because she is a woman and they were neighbors/friends. Mrs. Hale feels guilty because she was not there for Mrs. Wright more. She feels that it is her fault for not helping her and keeping her from following such a horrible path. Mrs. Hale also sticks up for Mrs. Wright by telling Mrs. Peters about how could Mr. Wright could be and how unhappy he must have mad Mrs. Wright. Mrs. Peters admits that when she was younger she had to watch a boy kill her kitten and her friends had to hold her back so she would not hurt the boy (Glaspell, 753). This shows that Mrs. Peters understood why Mrs. Wright would do what she did to Mr. Wright. In the very end the County Attorney talks about how Mrs. Peters is married to the law and would not do anything to jeopardize the case even though it was a woman who committed the crime (Glaspell, 755). Ironically, Mrs. Peters did go against the law by hiding evidence from the men because she understands what Mrs. Wright is going through and does not want anything bad

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