Susan Glaspell lays out a unique set of circumstances involving a farmer’s murder in “A Jury of Her Peers.” She weaves the trifles of women with superiority of men at the time. Taking a closer look at the perceptions of the men and women, the disparities between their assertions in the investigation, the physical evidence the women produce, and the lack of motive the men provide, it appears Minnie Foster Wright warrants compassion in her case.
Initially, Lewis Hale mentions he does not believe John Wright cares about what his wife wants (Glaspell 185). There is a rocker in disrepair, a “peculiar, ungainly” cupboard, and a stove with a broken lining that suggest Mr. Wright is not interested in maintaining the residence with the essentials of heating, cooking, or furnishings (185, 187, 190). In addition to his apparent laziness, further corroboration is a skirt that “bore the marks of much making over” points to Mr. Wright as stingy or never having any money (189).
Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters are keen to notice the failings of Mr. Wright that might cause Minnie to be depressed (190). The county attorney blames Mrs. Wright for the condition of the home by pointing out a dirty towel in the kitchen and some dirty pans under the sink (187). The men take turns insinuating women worry about “trifles” and completely overlook any of Mr. Wright’s faults (187). Mrs. Hale has to leave her kitchen in disarray to come with Mrs. Peters and takes issue with their characterization of Minnie’s culpability by quickly pointing out that there is a lot of work to be done around a farm (187). The county attorney is completely ignorant of the amount of work it takes to wash laundry. “To call Minnie’s work ‘instinctual,’ as the attorney does...is to evade...
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...at must be avenged” (295).
Works Cited
Bendel-Simso, Mary M., “Twelve Good Men or Two good Women: Concepts of Law and Justice in Susan
Glaspell’s ‘A Jury of Her Peers’.” Studies in Short Fiction, Vol. 36, No. 3. Newberry: Newberry College, Summer, 1999. 291-297. Print.
Glaspell, Susan, “A Jury of Her Peers.” Literature An Introduction to Reading and Writing.
Eds. Roberts, Edgar V. and Zweig, Robert, 10th edition. Glenview: Pearson Education,
2012. 183-196. Print.
Hodges, Elaine, “Small Things Reconsidered: Susan Glaspell’s ‘A Jury of Her Peers’.” Women’s Studies,
Vol. 12. Great Britain: Gordon and Breach Science Publishers, Inc., 1986. 89-110. Print.
Mustazza, Leonard, “Generic Translation and Thematic Shift in Susan Glaspell's ‘Trifles’ and ‘A Jury of Her
Peers’.” Studies in Short Fiction, Vol. 26, No. 4. Newberry: Newberry College, Fall, 1989. 489-496.
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A story of murder, fear, and the temptation of betrayal is one that easily snatches up the attention of audiences. In “A Jury of Her Peers” by Susan Glaspell, the author uses her southern female characters to emphasize the direct relationship between friendship and connection. Her plot circles around the disastrous discovery of their fellow housewife’s marital murder, and the events that unfolded causing their ultimate decision in prosecuting or shielding her from the men in the story. The author implements revealing dialogue with subtle detailing and glaring symbolism to display the coveted friendships among women above other relationships and that the paths they take to secure them stem from inveterate personal connections.
In A Jury of Peers by Susan Glaspell, the story revolves around the sudden death of John Wright. There are five characters that participate in the investigation of this tragedy. Their job is to find a clue to the motive that will link Mrs. Wright, the primary suspect, to the murder. Ironically, the ladies, whose duties did not include solving the mystery, were the ones who found the clue to the motive. Even more ironic, Mrs. Hale, whose presence is solely in favor of keeping the sheriff s wife company, could be contributed the most to her secret discovery. In this short story, Mrs. Hale s character plays a significant role to Mrs. Wright s nemesis in that she has slight feelings of accountability and also her discovery of the clue to the motive.
Glaspell, Susan. "A Jury of Her Peers." Literature and Its Writers. 6th ed. Boston, New York:
The central theme in “A Jury of Her Peers” is the place of women in society and especially the isolation this results in. We see this through the character, Minnie Foster and her isolation from love, happiness, companionship and from society as a whole. Not only does the story describe this isolation but it allows the reader to feel the impact of this isolation and recognize the tragedy of the situation.
and Trifles and 'A Jury of Her Peers,' by Susan Glaspell." Atlantis 24.1 (June 2002): 299-
Grose, Janet L. “Susan Glaspell’s Trifles and ‘A Jury of Her Peers’: Feminine Reading and
In the story, “A Jury of Her Peers,” by Susan Glaspell, we see how women are subjugated to stereotypical gender roles, where men are superior over women. The two main characters, Mrs. Peters and Martha Hale arrive at the Wright residence, with the men to investigate the crime scene. Minnie Foster-Wright has been arrested for allegedly strangling her husband with a rope. Mr. Hale (Martha’s husband), is a witness, who found Minnie sitting in a rocker and her husband dead upstairs. The attorney general, Mr. Henderson asks Mr. Hale and the sheriff, Mr. Peters to help him investigate the crime and explain what he had seen that day. As the men go upstairs and into the barn to investigate, Martha and Mrs. Peters are left in the kitchen to gather
Social gender separations are displayed in the manner that men the view Wright house, where Mr. Wright has been found strangled, as a crime scene, while the women who accompany them clearly view the house as Mrs. Wright’s home. From the beginning the men and the women have are there for two separate reasons —the men, to fulfill their duties as law officials, the women, to prepare some personal items to take to the imprisoned Mrs. Wright. Glaspell exposes the men’s superior attitudes, in that they cannot fathom women to making a contribution to the investigation. They leave them unattended in a crime scene. One must question if this would be the same action if they were men. The county attorney dismisses Mrs. Hale’s defenses of Minnie as “l...
Ortiz, Lisa. Critical Essay on “A Jury of Her Peers.” Short Stories for Students. Detroit: Gale. 163-166.
Glaspell, Susan. "A Jury of Her Peers." Literature and the Writing Process. Eds. Elizabeth McMahan, Susan X. Day, and Robert Funk. 4th Ed. Upper Saddle River: Prentice, 1996. 293-307.
...could relate to the daily struggles of completing chores to please their husbands and children and understood how Minnie Wright could develop feelings of desolation due to the lack of variety in daily activities. When the men found the unwashed towels by the sink and the burst jars of fruit in the cupboard, they quickly took a tone of disgust and disappointment that Mrs. Wright fell short of her “womanly duty” of picking up daily messes. Women in the early 20th century often were not rewarded for completing difficult tasks amongst the homestead on a daily basis, but could be punished and mistreated for not completing the tasks in a timely manner. Glaspell’s work “offers a sympathetic portrait of an abused wife, a woman who is mistreated economically, psychologically, emotionally, and perhaps physically… [her actions] supporting battered woman syndrome” (Keetley).
Glaspell’s decision to present "Trifles" as a play instead of its short story original form (titled :"A Jury of Her Peers) gives the reader an opportunity to "see" the action better than usual, and therefore get a clearer understanding of the author’s meaning.
...g to conceive to her audience by proving all opinions matter no matter whose it is. By looking in the past the audience can see that the story shows some significant similarities to the time it was written in. Glaspell shows women how a united cause can show the world that women should have just as much rights as men do. The theme of the story is expressly told through how and why Mr. Wright is murdered and Mrs. Peters transformation at the end of the story. Film adaptations that changed the title of Trifles to A Jury of Her Peers probably did it to appeal to the male audience and include a double meaning of how a jury can hold bias even with evidence directly given to them.
Glaspell spent more than forty years working as a journalist, fiction writer, playwright and promoter of various artistic. She is a woman who lived in a male dominated society. She is the author of a short story titled A Jury of Her Peers. She was inspired to write this story when she investigated in the homicide of John Hossack, a prosperous county warren who had been killed in his sleep(1).Such experience in Glaspell’s life stimulated inspiration. The fact that she was the first reporter on scene, explains that she must have found everything still in place, that makes an incredible impression. She feels what Margaret (who is Minnie Wright in the story) had gone through, that is, she has sympathy for her. What will she say about Margaret? Will she portray Margaret as the criminal or the woman who’s life has been taken away? In the short story Minnie Wright was the victim. Based on evidence at the crime scene, it is clear that Minnie has killed her husband; however, the women have several reasons for finding her “not guilty” of the murder of John Wright.
Wright felt in this house. The play takes place in the kitchen of the Wright’s farm house, “arguably the (only) domain of Mrs. Wright.” (McDaniel) Choosing this location within the house draws attention to the domesticated role of the women and Mrs. Wright’s perceived failure in this role by the unkempt condition of her domain. This serves to create a separation between the genders, drawing the women closer together with Mrs. Wright. Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters try to defend the condition of her kitchen by telling their counterparts that it’s not always easy to keep a clean kitchen and there is a great deal more work involved than the men seem to understand. Life in the farmlands of the Midwest was often a very lonely and depressive experience, having miles between neighbors and no telephones or televisions to break the silence of the hard labor required to sustain the families. (McDaniel) The Wright’s farm house described as being “down in a hollow and you don’t see the road” (Meyer, pg 1044) serves as a physical separation of Mrs. Wright’s environment and the rest of her community. It is also stated to be a cold, gloomy atmosphere, having always been a “lonesome place” (Meyer, pg. 1044) demonstrating the lack of affection Mr. Wright held for his