Introduction
The social injustice that women faced in the 20th century has not changed much by the 21st century. Women’s voices remain unheard, and men disregard their opinions and feelings. Susan Glaspell invites the reader to look at women’s relationships through the prism of shared experiences with men.
Repeatedly pointing to social injustice, Glaspell argues that gender issues have escalated in the 20th century and have been the source of many subsequent conflicts. However, it should be understood that she is on the side of women because she shares their pain from male violence and prejudice. In “Trifles,” through the example of women’s solidarity, she proves that women have to fight men daily to make the little things in their lives meaningful.
Central Theme
At the center of the play unfolds a short action with the investigation of Mr. Wright’s murder when his wife is under suspicion. The sheriff and the district attorney visit Mr. Wright’s home, along with Mr. Hale and two women who are acquaintances of Mrs. Wright. Glaspell consistently reveals the details of the murder through little things that only the women notice, thereby driving the play’s mood.
She compares the gender roles of men and women in the environment in which they live. She contrasts attitudes toward trivia through the example of Mr. and Mrs. Wright and shows men’s attitudes toward women’s labor. In addition, she takes the side of women who are unhappy with the rude and dismissive attitudes of men. Glaspell’s primary purpose is to convince us that there is no value in the distribution of gender roles in the 20th century for women forced to serve men.
Gender Roles
Glaspell shows the apparent differences between men’s and women’s social roles. She notes the unhappiness of women who must be “more comfortable looking” every day to gain approval (Glaspell 1). Glaspell suggests looking at how the women in the play are perceived through the eyes of men who do not even consider it essential to say hello. “Well, women are used to worrying over trifles” is all Mr. Hale thinks of his wife or any other woman (Glaspell 3).
The behavior of the officer and the district attorney also indicates that the woman is merely their servant and household organizer. For example, the district attorney states, “What would we do without the ladies?” and then begins criticizing them for dirty towels (Glaspell 4). He ignores Mrs. Hale’s answers because he never wants to know them.
Prejudice and insolence can be seen very clearly in the prosecutor’s speech: “She had the homemaking instinct” (Glaspell 3). His unwillingness to engage in domesticity is an aberration in his reality and that of other men. Again, the women’s opinions are not asked by anyone present; they are constantly interrupted, and the words remain empty.
The relationship between men and women in the play can be seen in the marriage of Mr. Wright and Mrs. Wright. None of the women speaks of their relationship as good or happy; for example, Mrs. Hale speaks of their home as “never seemed a very cheerful place” (Glaspell 3). Further down the course of the play, we learn that Mr. Wright was angry with his wife on more than one occasion and raised his hand, violated personal boundaries, and disrespected her as a woman. Such a marriage is the source of the problem and the result of centuries of pressure and humiliation of women.
Women’s opinions are irrelevant to men; therefore, the sheriff and the district attorney pay little or no attention to the women (Glaspell 2). The men lead the dialogues, get the most comfortable seat by the fireplace, and do not think about how wrong their beliefs about women’s behavior are. Glaspell proves that injustice cannot be tolerated forever, which is why there are such unfortunate consequences.
Women’s Solidarity and Empathy
Women’s solidarity is a new theme in 20th-century literature, but Glaspell shows it ideally in the dialogues of women. Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters are unhappy with the men’s treatment of their work and the rudeness of the district attorney, and the towel incident seems to them to be a wild and brazen violation of their space (Glaspell 4). They also express obvious concern for Mrs. Wright, who “doesn’t enjoy things” because the daily chores are wearing her out and making her miserable (Glaspell 4). The women sincerely sympathize with her because they know the marriage ruined her. They suspect her of killing her husband because they understand how trifles indicate a woman’s attitude toward the world (Glaspell 5).
They recognize that men do not understand women, and these differences lead to the problem of gender roles. No matter how much they try to prove that shawls, towels, and properly spaced pots are essential to them because it is their responsibility, they cannot entirely resist. “The law is the law,” says Mrs. Peters, and both women condemn murder (Glaspell 5). In the end, however, they understand Mrs. Wright’s reasons.
The little things men understood were the insignificant things and actions that women did every day to fulfill their duty to serve them. The men of that time never realized how much they could spoil their women because they did not want to. Mr. Wright paid the price for treating his wife rudely: he killed her bird, considering it as a trifle (Glaspell 8).
Mrs. Wright could not continue to tolerate this attitude because her husband never listened to her, had no respect for her hobby, and perceived her every action as foolishness. Such a small thing as a pet was the last straw for the unfortunate woman who had never felt loved or cared for, so she went on a killing spree. The other women accept her feelings, express sympathy, and, deep down, do not grieve because they have repeatedly faced cruelty and unkindness. Mrs. Peters had attempted to tell the men who the murderer was, but Mrs. Hale did not let her (Glaspell 9). The reader realizes that she could not have done otherwise because every scene in the play proves gender and social injustice.
Conclusion
Susan Glaspell invited the reader to examine the social injustices of the 20th century and show that women’s problems were long-standing and violated their rights. Men ignored their opinions and saw them as servants; other behavior was perceived as strange. Marriage was not happy for many women like Mrs. Wright, and as a result, men could expect terrible consequences.
Long periods of pressure on women resulted in that they could no longer turn a blind eye to injustice and began to fight back. The men were so ignorant of how it could be that they never gave a damn about the little things women did to assert their rights. Susan Glaspell proves through the example of Mrs. Wright, Mrs. Hale, and Mrs. Peters that women’s solidarity was a significant weapon that men never noticed.
Work Cited
Glaspell, Susan. Trifles. One Act Play, no date. Web.