Introduction
The character of Minnie, who has endured years of violence at the hands of her husband, John Wright, is followed in the play “Trifles.” After watching him purposefully twist the neck of her cherished canary in front of her, Minnie killed her husband. This became her pivotal moment, although Minnie’s character had already been enslaved and raped by her husband, who stands in for the patriarchal and male-dominated society she lives in, long before this struggle began.
Main body
Minnie was portrayed as a woman of modest income who was too basic to dress in really ratty attire, always acting bashful, and who had a muted disposition. The way her character was treated meant to portray the concept that males are superior to women and that patriarchy is always in control. When Sheriff Henry Peters and District Attorney George Henderson went to the Wright home to look into the incident, it may be argued that the same thing happened. For instance, the men dispatched to investigate decided not to go into the room where Minnie was last seen unconscious after killing her husband because, according to the sheriff, “there’s nothing here but kitchenware” (Levine et al., 2012). This raised the issue of sexism and demonstrated the sheriff’s patronizing attitude toward what women accomplish. Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters, who were examining the kitchen, found a shattered birdcage and the body of Minnie’s canary with a broken neck. They realized that Minnie had been abused for a very long period. They decided to conceal this evidence to rule out any reason that would have indicated Minnie’s desire to murder her husband.
Conclusion
The female characters in this play stood together to express their displeasure with how they were treated as property by their male counterparts, who were part of a heavily patriarchal and male-dominated society. Minnie was forced out of the harsh atmosphere that had long restricted her and her genuine self by their efforts in trying to heal her. However, she was given a second opportunity to behave proudly and confidently in a culture that made fun of her. In “Trifles,” female heroes stood up for one another against the limitations and mistreatment imposed by their unfair patriarchal culture.
Reference
Levine, R. S., Elliot, M.A., Gustafson, S.M., Hungerford, A., & Loeffelholz, M. (Eds.) (2012). The Norton anthology of American literature (Shorter 10th ed.). New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc.