Introduction
Words, especially sincere and true ones, are people’s most powerful and influential weapons. They can go deep into humans’ hearts and souls and touch the innermost and most essential parts. Some crucial concepts, including dreams, freedom, equality, fairness, and family, are sometimes so difficult to discuss that persons decide not to talk about them. Great writers use their inner power to allow words to influence people and make them think about the most essential concepts and ideas in the whole world. A Raisin in the Sun, play by Lorraine Hansberry, and Trifles, Susan Glaspell’s one-act, are exactly those literary works that do not leave readers indifferent and touch the strings of their souls with gentle power. The purpose of this comparative drama essay is to discuss these two plays’ similar themes – gender differences and the role of women in those times.
Common Theme: Gender and Feminism
The main characters of both plays are men and women, and their interactions with each other are explored by the authors. Therefore, gender inequalities, various types of women and men, and the influence of society on the lives and roles of female characters are in particular attention. Though this gender and feminism theme is common to A Raisin in the Sun and Trifles, there are some similarities and differences in its developments.
A Raisin in the Sun: Gender and Feminism
It is possible to say that this play anticipates the massive and extremely necessary changes in the relations between men and women, including the Sexual Revolution and the rise of feminism. In A Raisin in the Sun, there is partial equality between the main male and female characters, though it is not appreciated by some of them. Interestingly, it is possible to suggest that the play’s protagonist’s belated rise to manhood simultaneously represents the dominance of fathers and sons in the family and the need for equality between women and men.
Walter and the Manhood
To begin with, the play is woven with the notions of femininity and masculinity, which appear to be different from the points of view of the characters. The play’s both antagonist and protagonist, Walter Lee Younger, represents the typical mid-twentieth-century African-American man’s perspective regarding the role of males and females. Walter perceives saving the family from poverty as his duty and does not even want to listen to his mother’s, wife’s, and sister’s advice. At the same time, he is outraged by Mama’s position as the head of the family, which limits him to the status of a “child” in his own home and does not allow him to finally enter manhood.
Precisely the concept of manhood is used by Walter to justify the fact that his wife has to care about him, and Mama should give him money. Moreover, instead of encouraging his sister Beneatha to become a doctor and fulfill her dream, Walter tries to make her get married, which also highlights men’s views regarding women’s roles. The fact that he changes his attitude at the end of the play leaves a double impression. First, he becomes the “head of the family,” which signifies the dominance of men of that time. Second, Walter finally starts to listen to his Mama, sister, and wife, and his views change for the better, which provides hope for the role of women becoming more significant.
Different Women of the Play
It is fair to notice that the female characters of A Raisin in the Sun also have various ideas regarding their roles and duties. Mama is the representative of an older generation’s perspective. Her priority is the family’s wellbeing, and she sincerely cares about all its members. Though she does not approve of Ruth’s consideration of abortion and Beneatha’s progressive and partly un-Christian ideas, she is always by their side. Ruth, Walter’s supportive and caring wife, has similar ideas and is relatively comfortable with her role. Her thoughts about abortion, which was prohibited at that time, are probably the only sign of the necessity of feminism.
As for Beneatha, who does not perceive marriage as the only fate of a woman and dreams of becoming a doctor, she provides a feminist, independent, and young perspective. Out of the play’s women, she is the only one who disagrees with the role and duties of women and aims at achieving more. Beneatha’s presence in A Raisin in the Sun probably represents the feministic ideas of the author and proves that changes are required and will follow soon.
Trifles: Gender and Feminism
Unfortunately, this play is not as inspiring and hopeful as A Raisin in the Sun, and its female characters have less hope. To begin with, Trifles portrays men who feel and use their power to dominate and suppress women, as well as females who unite and support each other. Minnie Wright, one of the play’s main characters, kills her unkind and abusive husband after years of suffering the difficulties of living with him. Numerous symbols prove her inner struggle, distressed mind, and emotional instability. In her youth, she was innocent, joyful, and happy, but her marriage and the necessity of fulfilling the duties of a woman broke her. It becomes evident from the play that Minnie’s husband made her stay at home, do household chores, remain isolated from other people, and be a good and proper wife. Such abuse and isolation, as well as the role of an obedient and humble woman, were common at that time.
What is more, one of the main ideas of Trifles is that gender differences and women’s suppression may be fought by unity. Mrs. Peters, the wife of the sheriff, and Mrs. Hale, the neighboring farmer’s spouse, find some evidence that it was Minnie who murdered John Wright. However, after uncovering proof that her husband was an abuser, the two women decide to hide evidence and make it harder for their husbands to prove Minnie’s guilt. This is their small rebellion against the male-dominated society and the role of women.
Throughout the play, Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters sincerely sympathize with Minnie. They can understand her sufferings and the desire to end them because all women go through relatively the same. In Trifles, the way of murdering John Wright, who was strangled in his sleep, symbolizes the essence and horror of the female’s role. Women are in a nightmare, and the duties imposed on them by society strangle and kill them.
Conclusion
To conclude, one may say that though these plays discuss the same theme, it is developed in different ways. A Raisin in the Sun and Trifles give hope and demonstrate that it is never too late for women to stop pleasing society and start chasing their dreams. However, A Raisin in the Sun shows that not all women need this, and some may live happily while fulfilling their duties. At the same time, those females who desire to be independent and feminist have this chance. As for Trifles, it portrays those women who are driven to despair by the role of humble housemaids imposed on them, and those who hardly notice the gender inequalities.
References
Glaspell, S., & Wilson, H. (2014). Trifles. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform.
Hansberry, L., & Nemiroff, R. (2004). A Raisin in the Sun (Reprint, Reissue ed.). Vintage.