Susan Glaspell A Jury Of Her Peers

“A Jury of Her Peers” by Susan Glaspell focuses on the role of women and how they are expected to behave in society. Glaspell, emphasizing her work on feminist ideas, explains “that men possess and that women are denied” (914). She stresses how women are treated and how they are forced to act under the circumstances. Glaspell illustrates how women are oppressed in society and how that impacts them. Glaspell show us how women are inferior to men and how it can push them over the edge. The way they are required to act is physically and emotionally draining. In this short story told in third person, Glaspell uses symbolism through characters and objects in the story to display the stereotypical role women play and how the way they are treated

House birds are normally kept in a cage, which can cause them to feel enclosed and trapped. Mrs. Wright’s home, was her confined cage. The bird cage signifies Mrs. Wright’s perspective towards her married life. She was unable to escape the abusive relationship with John. Before her marriage, Mrs. Hale speaks of Mrs. Wright, “She come to think of it, she was kind of like a bird herself. Real sweet and pretty, but kind of timid and fluttery. How-she-did-change” (179). The bird expresses Mrs. Wright faultlessly. It sang for her when she couldn’t, and kept that small piece of happiness inside her. It was the only companion she had to keep her sanity and block out the negativity John brought in her life. The bird filled her loneliness until John’s abuse took that away from her. There was no way for Mrs. Wright to escape the nightmare she was living in. The women distinctly remember her before her marriage and are shocked to discover how much it has reshaped her. John, incapable of loving and fulfilling her needs as his wife, killed the bird and killed Minnie’s personality. John dictated Minnie’s role as solely a women who cooks, cleans, and cares for him. When John killed the bird, he figuratively kills Minnie. The bird and the birdcage represent the role of women in society and how powerless they are to free themselves from the cage they live in. Women are like birds, while men are their

Wright’s story. Without making Mrs. Wright present throughout the story, she still creates her thoughts and feelings through objects and others. It shows how Minnie and the other women live oppressed under the authority of men. This reflects how men treat women not only in the story, but society. Every women should have power in their life and especially in their relationship. A system that men dominate over women is not tolerated at all. Every woman should have their individuality and a man should never jeopardize that. Men and women should have equal roles and work together to create a life together. Although they may have different roles, it is both a man and a woman that complete each