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A Jury of Her Peers

            There have always been social differences between men and women. These differences have been the 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 are clueless and the women who have the insight into what really happened between John and Minnie Wright.
             The setting in A Jury of Her Peers is rural Midwestern at the turn of the century. The women living rural country at that time would not be highly educated and normally be relegated to hearth and home. Mrs. Peters is described as somewhat of a timid lady and did not seem to fit the image of a sheriff's wife. Mrs. Hale on the other hand is the hearty farmer's wife and well suited for her role in life. The women were brought along simply to tend to an errand of getting some clothes that Minnie Wright had requested. In contrast with the women in the story, two of the male characters have intellectual occupations that carry authority. George Henderson is the county attorney and Henry Peters is the town's sheriff who is described as being able to know instinctively a person who is a criminal. It never occurs to the men that the women could be of value in finding whether or not Minnie Wright had a motive to kill her husband, even though Mrs. Hale was the only person in that group that had known Minnie in the past. The men believe that the women were incapable of helping in the investigation as Mr. Hales jokingly asked the other men: "Would the women know a clue if they did come upon it?".


Essays Related to A Jury of Her Peers

1. A jury of her peers

... . Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters go along to gather a few of Minnie's belongings to take to her. The ladies find more than they bargained for in the cold farmhouse. Glaspell's bleak descriptions of the house in the hollow draw the reader into the cold, lonely world of Minnie Wright. A Jury of Her Peers Susan Glaspell was in born in Davenport, Iowa on 1876. She is an American fiction ... an American writer George Cram Cook in 1913. (MS Encarta Encyclopedia) Susan Glaspell's "A Jury of Her Peers" is a short story that presents to us the gender conflict in society A Jury of Peers In A Jury of Pe...

  • Word Count: 1262
  • Approx Pages: 5
  • Grade Level: High School

2. A Jury of Her Peers by Susan Glaspell

... 's death, they live under the patriarchal society rules. The story by Glaspell can be seemed as one feminist piece of literature. The story content exposes the inferior role of woman in society in comparison to men´s role. In her short story "A Jury of Her Peers", Susan Glaspell exposes how women are treated in a patriarchal society through men´s actions. The first men´s action to expose the ... the woman in the kitchen, and the kitchen is the most important thing in life for them, but the work a woman does in kitchen is devalued by men. In "A Jury of Her Peers" women are not looking ...

  • Word Count: 1016
  • Approx Pages: 4
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: High School

3. Symbolism in Jury of Her Peers

... can create oppression for women and also bring harm to men as well" ("The Use"). Glaspell, through symbols, demonstrates how hard and unfair a woman's life was at the beginning of the nineteenth century. Character names are very important in Glaspell's "A Jury of Her Peers." The name Minnie has significant symbolism derived from mini or minimized, suggesting something small and not important. "It is very descriptive ... have many rights and the man owning the property was very common as well as the fact that a woman was property also. Her role was to sit in this kitchen and cook dinner ...

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

4. A Wife and a Woman: A critical essay of A Jury of Her Peers

... 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 Her Peers," revolves around the county attorney, Mr. Henderson, the sheriff, Mr. Peters and his wife, and Mr. ... Hale and his wife. The men are investigating the murder of Mr. Wright, the only obvious suspect being his wife. Glaspell makes it clear to the ... housewives. They exempli...

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

5. A Jury of Her Peers

... 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 interest, ignorant of the separation and problems it causes. They fail to closely examine ... and understanding between the sexes in this society. This contrasts with Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters who as " peers" of Mrs. Wright, can identify the problems in her daily life and realize their own inadvertent participation in Mrs. Wright's demise. The different ways in which th...

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

6. A Worn Path and A Jury of Her Peers

... are looking for. Different representations in the stories embody the individual characters, such as names, animals, and the environment. Character names are very important in "A Jury of Her Peers." Minnie Wright is the protagonist and her name shows significant symbolism. Minnie could be interpreted as miniature or insignificant, which would epitomize this character as she seems to have withered as a person when she ... as the attendant who persistently asks her questions. Finally, "there was a flicker and then a flame of comprehension across her face, and she spoke" (274). This abrupt r...

  • Word Count: 1059
  • Approx Pages: 4
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: High School

7. The Right to an Impartial Jury

... procedure. In our united states there is the misconception about criminal proceedings. In particular the area where it concerns jurist being a cross section of society. The mistake is made in thinking that the makeup must be of a "jury of one's peers ". That is not the case. It was noted in a 1945 case, Thiel Vs. Southern Pacific Company, the supreme court clarified the ... concept of a " jury of one's peers " by noting that while it is not necessary for every jury to contain representatives of every conceivable racial, ethnic, religious, gender, and economic group in the community, cou...

  • Word Count: 1709
  • Approx Pages: 7
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: High School

8. A Jury Of Her Peers

... a lot to offer for the investigation. The Author Susan Glaspell shows an obvious stereotypical attitude by men towards women in her story, A Jury of Her Peers. The men don't understand women enough to ask the ladies to help them to uncover where a women might conceal her murder evidence, and it seemed the men were searching in all the wrong places for evidence. According to the story ... when Mr. Wright will die. Luckily the ladies searching through the house more than less like Mrs. Wright, for they seemed to plat the role of the jury in this story. Thus, the reason for the title, "A J...

  • Word Count: 1347
  • Approx Pages: 5
  • Grade Level: High School

9. Comparison Of Three Articles

... teacher, the offender's family, etc.) B-Rather than keep it a counselor/offender relationship, the basis for the offender adjustment is in his or her natural or community relationships that need strengthening. C-This approach extends beyond the focus of offender needs and obligations to the larger social context, building wherever possible links to the community to help deliver opportunities to the offender, such ... , whether he or she feels remorse, and what punishment the offender received from his or her parents. Juvenile juries are often more interested in the events surrounding the...

  • Word Count: 2156
  • Approx Pages: 9

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