The short story by Susan Glaspell is full of flat and round characters. There is a reason why the authors crated both flat and round characters. This is a typical formula used by writers. This is because there is not enough space to develop characters and for readers to empathize with them and to understand fully the context of their existence within the story.
The flat characters are important because they provide a platform that allows the more rounded characters to shine. In this short story the presence of flat and round characters are not the only elements of fiction writing that are in full display the author also used stereotypes to create an interesting and believable story.
Before going any further it is important to point out that flat characters are characters found in the story that the author did not bother to develop even further (Arp, 2006). Sometimes there is a mere passing description of their presence. They may come up regularly within the plot but there is a limited amount of information given to create in the minds of a reader a character that has more layers or texture so to speak.
A round character on the other hand is a character in the story that the author focuses on (Arp, 2006). Usually this character, is the protagonist or antagonist, or simply someone who plays an important role in the development of the plot. By creating round characters the storytelle,r allows the reader to empathize with the character and the story comes to life.
A stereotype on the other hand is a technique used by writers to immediately create believable characters without having to use up precious space to inform the reader who they are and what they do. The use of stereotypes is a critical component of this short story because these characters immediately fills up the stage and these are the characters that can make the story believable.
More importantly the author ,can immediately go to the main point of the story without a lengthy introduction describing what the character looks like. For example a stereotyp,e of a police officer is enough for the reader to understand that a police officer is an important component of the story but the author does not need to elaborate even further.
Characters
The Sheriff, Hale, County Attorney, and even the two wives can be considered as flat characters. It is only Mrs. Wright and to some extent Mr. Wright who can be considered as well-rounded characters. There is not much that has been said about the Sheriff except the fact that he is there because he has to perform perfunctory duties. As a Sheriff he was obligated to investigate the scene of the crime.
The same thing can be said about the County Attorney. There is not much that has been said about him. He was there to investigate the crime. The same is true for Mr. Hale because he was the witness to the crime.
There is not much that has been said about him, his personality, even the extent of his relationship with Mr. and Mrs. Wright was not explored. It was enough for the writer to say that he is a neighbour of the Wrights. The wives are also flat characters and although they were mentioned most of the time they only served as commentators and narrators.
Through the eyes of Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters, the readers were able to see the rounded character of Mrs. Wright and to some extent Mr. Wright. From them the readers were able to get a glimpse of the former life of Mrs. Wright and how she suffered as the wife of an overbearing husband. Through the recollection of the two ladies it was discovered why Mrs. Wright felt terrible with the destruction of the canary at the hands of an angry Mr. Wright. The reader was then able to understand why Mrs. Wright was driven to kill her husband.
As mentioned, stereotypes were used so that the storyteller can immediately get to the meat of the story. The Sheriff, the Country Attorney as well as the dutiful wives were in stereotypical roles. The Sheriff was said to be middle-aged and a take-charge guy who is also a natural leader. He was able to command the group.
The Attorney, on the other hand, played the stereotypical role of the investigator perfectly. The wives were dutiful, and they could not criticize the way the men condescended on them. But in the end, they showed their true colors by protecting one of their own. Although they have evidence to link Mrs. Wright to the crime, they chose to withhold that crucial piece of information and that is a stereotypical behavior for women.
Conclusion
The author was able to skilfully mesh the flat and round characters. The flat characters were able to help the writer set up the stage so to speak so that the round characters will shine brightly in the story. The round characters, on the other hand, were given enough space for the reader to empathize or understand what they had to go through. In the case of Mrs. Wright, the reader understood why she had to kill her husband. Stereotypes were used effectively as well to make the story believable.
Works Cited
Arp, Johnson, & Perrine, G. Perrine’s Literature: Structure, Sound and Sense. Boston, MA: Thomson Wadsworth, 2006.
Glaspell, Susan. Trifles. Virginia Commonwealth University. 1916. Web.