Symbolism plays a major part in the play "Trifles." From the very beginning of the play, symbolism is evident in the first line. Glaspell (1916) writes, "The kitchen in the now abandoned farmhouse of John Wright, a gloomy kitchen, and left without having been put in order-unwashed pans under the sink, a loaf of bread outside the breadbox, a dish towel on the table- other signs of incomplete work" (1927). The author starts the play describing how empty and a mess the everyday lives of the Wrights were. Throughout the play, symbolism remains a constant that lets the reader examine who the charac...

• Word Count: 1017
• Approx Pages: 4
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

Susan Glaspell was born in Davenport, Iowa in 1876. After graduating high school, she started writing professionally, for a local newspaper. In 1901, she began her career as a fiction writer. Her fiction works ... , she married George Cram Cook. He was also a writer, and the two moved to the east coast where they worked on many projects together, and founded two different theater groups. Glaspell died in 1948, having published many stories, plays, and novels. She wrote realism, mainly about women in the Midwest, in rural settings. Her play, Trifles, is an example. It also ... they found a bo...

• Word Count: 2006
• Approx Pages: 8
• Grade Level: High School

According to Merriam Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, the meaning of Law is the whole body of such custom, practices, or rules and the definition of justice is the quality of being just, impartial, or fair. The men in this story seek to find John Wright's murder and punish that individual to the fullest extent of the "Law." The two women empathize with Mrs. Wright, and thus seek "Justice" for the woman who had so much life before marriage. In life there are many breaking points. Many things factor in to make one person snap and lash out at another person. Men and women vary in different ways: ...

• Word Count: 806
• Approx Pages: 3
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

A Wife and a Woman: A Critical essay of Susan Glaspell's "A Jury of Her Peers." Stereotypes, according to The Merriam-Webster's Dictionary, are ideas about a thing or a group that may often be ... children and care for them, tend to the cooking and the cleaning, and be seen and not heard. Susan Glaspell's, "A Jury of Her Peers," challenges this classic stereotype of what is expected of a wife and woman. Glaspell accomplishes this by exemplifying the basic human needs of a woman and their value to society. "A Jury of ... woman. When looking around Mrs. Wright's kitchen the men noticed disorga...

• Word Count: 1653
• Approx Pages: 7
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

In the story, "A Jury of Her Peers" written by Susan Glaspell, Minnie Wright is accused of murder of her husband. While the sheriff and other men are looking in the room upstairs for some evidence of a ... kitchen is described as being in disorder with "dirty pans under the sink," a loaf of bread outside the bread-box, and a dishtowel left on the table (Glaspell 200). This gives the impression that no attention has been paid to cleaning up, either recently or usually. This kitchen has an old black stove, faded wallpaper, no ... table. There is nothing feminine in this kitchen. You can hardly...

• Word Count: 1048
• Approx Pages: 4
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... to show that the omission of the clues found in the kitchen and the complete disregard for women serve as a consequence to solving the case. In this play written by Susan Glaspell, the plot, the actions of various characters, and the dialogue communicate the author's disapproval of gender-role stereotypes. From the very beginning of the play, the author presents a patriarchal society ... in Mrs. Wright's sewing box. Had the men looked in the right place, they would have stumbled upon the clues that the women found. By this, one can see that Glaspell disapproves of gender stereotypes. Sh...

• Word Count: 661
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

Since the time when Eve set herself apart from Adam by consuming the forbidden fruit, there always have been vast differences in the way men and women conduct themselves. Susan Glaspell in "A Jury of her Peers" explores the divide between the male and female world. The men in the story talk to Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters with feigned and patronizing ... sexes, and restrictive gender roles. Mrs. Wright's sad tragedy showed the dangerous effects of living in an isolated, divided, and uncaring society such as the one presented in this story. Susan Glaspell exemplifies the differences between men ...

• Word Count: 1786
• Approx Pages: 7
• Grade Level: High School

Women's Intuition What part could women's intuition possible play in solving a murder? In Susan Glaspell's short story "A Jury of Her Peers", the female characters Martha Hale and Mrs. Peters glean many subtle clues from the ordinary surroundings of the accused, Minnie Wright. The women, who ... not ward off the chill. She wished she had visited when Minnie was there but "there was always something to do and Minnie Foster would go right from her mind" (Glaspell 2). Mrs. Peters, even though she did not previously know Minnie, felt hesitant to enter the house and refused an invitation by the c...

• Word Count: 871
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

Though men and women are now recognized as equal in intelligence, when Susan Glaspell wrote "Trifles" and "A Jury of Her Peers" in 1916, it was not so. In this turn-of-the-century setting, women were barely educated and had no power. Relegated to ... mercy of the men in their lives. It is just this powerless existence that over time developed into a power with which women could baffle their male counterparts: an intuition. In Glaspell's story, ironic situations contrast male and female intuition, illustrating that Minnie Wright is more fairly judged by "a jury of her peers." "Trifles" illus...

• Word Count: 550
• Approx Pages: 2
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... center of many plots and themes throughout the ages of literature. Many early twentieth century stories portrayed the female's character as demure and less intelligent than the male counterpart. Author Susan Glaspell was ahead of her time as she blurred the lines of traditional definitions, particularly of marriage and women's roles in society, in the early twentieth century. Based on her play ... Trifles, Glaspell's short story A Jury of Her Peers illustrates how men and women viewing the same set of circumstances will look at objects differently. In this story it is the men who ... ...

• Word Count: 1195
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

Trifles, written by Susan Glaspell, is the unique perspectives of the two different genders on the same issue. As suggested by its title, the central theme of Trifles is that things dismissed by some as ... ...

• Word Count: 561
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

Everyone is based upon his or her own physical characteristics and traits. These two elements make up a person and how their peers view them. In "A Jury of Her Peers", Susan Glaspell specifically chooses certain character traits for each character in order to make the reading interesting and have a certain twist to it at the same time. The character traits are brought ... ...

• Word Count: 1505
• Approx Pages: 6
• Grade Level: High School