Preview

What Happened In Susan Glaspell's Trifles?

Satisfactory Essays
Open Document
Open Document
200 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
What Happened In Susan Glaspell's Trifles?
In “Trifles” by Susan Glaspell the denouement was not expected. The men are in Mrs. Wright’s home looking for evidence of how her husband was murdered. The women are concerned about the preserved food and begin defending Mrs. Wright as the men criticize her housekeeping. The men begin to demean the women regarding what they see as important, in light of the murder. As the men are looking for clues the women begin to talk about what they believe has happened and what life has been like for Mrs. Wright. As they converse Mrs. Peter’s sympathy shifts from the law to how sad Mrs. Wright’s life must have been. As the ladies find the broken birdcage and the dead bird they realize what has happened. Knowing the how the men feel about their opinions
Continue Reading
View Writing Issues

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Brandon Esssay Life
    • 836 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Brandon Esssay Life

    Susan Glaspell’s “Trifles” dwelled on the investigation of the murder scene of Mr. Wright. In the beginning of the play, Mr. Wright was found dead in the upstairs bedroom with a rope hung around his neck. Lewis Hale recalled how he discovered Mrs. Wright acting bizarrely, and that she told him that her husband was murdered while he was sleeping. Mrs. Wright’s strange behavior and body language caused Mr. Hale and the Sherriff to believe that Mrs. Wright was the main suspect in her husband’s murder. There are three significant reasons for Mrs. Wright’s strange behavior. Mrs. Wright’s relationship, lifestyle, and the patriarchal dominance during that era caused Mrs. Wright to act inappropriately.…

    • 836 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Phase 4 Ip
    • 995 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Phase 4 Ip

    The play “Trifles” is a murder mystery about from 1916. The husband was found strangled by a rope in his bed and his wife was found rocking in a chair. When the authorities came to inspect the property they brought some neighbors of the wife to bring her something from the house. The most compelling part was when they found the bird also strangled and hid this information from the authorities almost to protect her.…

    • 995 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Trifles: Wife and Mrs. Wright Shoes
    • 729 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Trifles: Wife and Mrs. Wright Shoes

    “Trifles” was a very mysterious play. This play was written by Susan Glaspell. It does not explain why the two women helped Mrs. Wright. It does not mention any information about them being friends with her, so why would they help her? Mrs. Wright basically was tired of her husband’s ways and abuse and retaliated by murdering him. He was said to have killed her kitten years ago and in more recent terms, he killed her bird.…

    • 729 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Susan Glaspell's Trifles: A Jury Of Her Peers
    • 359 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Susan Glaspell's Trifles: A Jury Of Her Peers

    “Trifles” is a classic feminist play about two women’s secret discovery of a woman murdering her husband. “A Jury of her Peers” is another edition of this story. During the 1830’s, the “Temperance Movement” which was the very first American reform campaign to emphasize the brutality of domestic violence. Insisting that domestic violence was the direct influence of alcohol the reformers believed that survival of the alcoholic’s wife was dependent on her rights to control her own earnings, gain custody of her children, and to seek a divorce on her own and none of these were options at that time for most women.…

    • 359 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    How Does Susan Glaspell Use Of Hearsay Evidence In Trifles
    • 281 Words
    • 2 Pages

    How Does Susan Glaspell Use Of Hearsay Evidence In Trifles

    The play “Trifles” by Susan Glaspell is based during the time before deoxyribonucleic acid evidence was used (Glaspell, 2012, p. 555). Mr. Hale had come over to use Mr. and Mrs. Wright’s party phone. The play uses a lot of hearsay evidence instead of hard evidence like actually seeing the act of killing her husband. The main character is Minnie Wright. The play opens with Mrs. Wright sitting in her chair as her husband John lays upstairs with a rope around his neck.…

    • 281 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    What Is Lilly's Tragic?
    • 103 Words
    • 1 Page

    What Is Lilly's Tragic?

    As Lilly is diagnosed with ADHD, her symptoms such as poor decision making and impulsivity can prove to be problematic. Research has found that childhood ADHD symptoms are associated with increased patterns of challenging behaviour, including psychopathology and substance use, as well as lower cognitive, family, academic and overall functioning (Babinski et al., 2011). This demonstrates how Lilly’s ADHD can make her more susceptible to poor lifestyle choices. Moreover, although impulsivity and inattention may increase the likelihood of risky sexual behaviours (Jaffe, 2002), White et al. (2014) found that these risky sexual behaviours did not link ADHD symptoms and female adolescent sexual…

    • 103 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    What Is The Motive Behind Susan Glaspell's Trifles?
    • 297 Words
    • 2 Pages

    What Is The Motive Behind Susan Glaspell's Trifles?

    In “Trifles” by Susan Glaspell, the obvious murderer of Mr. Wright is Mrs. Wright. It wasn’t difficult to figure out this because Mrs. Wright was acting suspicious when questioned by the sheriff and county attorney Hale. She seemed entirely calm for a person who had just lost their husband. The motive behind Mrs. Wright killing her husband is unsure, but whatever it is it took Mrs. Wright over the edge. However, one reason n for Mrs. Wright to kill her husband could be because of domestic abuse. Its roots lie in that of physical and emotional trauma that Mrs. Wright endured with being married to Mr. Wright. I would assume that when Mr. Wright killed one of Mrs. Wright canaries that was a breaking point for his wife, she was vulnerable and mad.…

    • 297 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Susan Glaspell's Trifles And The Inheritors
    • 853 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Susan Glaspell's Trifles And The Inheritors

    Literature is always a reflection of its place of origin. It reflects the different values and traditions of the part of the world it comes from. In the same respect, American Literature has focused on our own, American values, such as freedom, honor and the different rights of men and women. In "Trifles" and "The Inheritors" both written by Susan Glaspell, we observe different qualities found in women and men and how are depicted in different light.…

    • 853 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Analysis of Trifles
    • 1297 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Analysis of Trifles

    Women are the only oppressed group in our society that live in intimate association with their oppressors and because of this most often live caged, unfulfilled lives. Trifles is a play by Susan Glaspell written in 1916. John Wright, who owned a farm, had been murdered the night before by strangulation in his bed. His wife, Minnie Wright, was accused of the homicide because she was the only one present at the time of his death. This one scene play focuses on the mystery and interaction between men and women at the time. The sheriff, county attorney, and Mr. Hale arrive at the home to look for evidence and treat the home like a crime scene causing them to miss out on vital clues for the case. Mrs. Peters, the sheriff’s wife, and Mrs. Hale arrive at the home to collect items that Mrs. Wright requested. Unlike the men they view the property as an actual home with meaning and not just another crime scene. For this reason they are able to uncover the motive by paying attention to the trifles the mean overlook. Because women’s feelings are often neglected the men we are in relation with often dominate our entire lives; making the two individuals that started out turn into one being.…

    • 1297 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    Trifles by Susan Glaspell
    • 1158 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Trifles by Susan Glaspell

    Trifles’ By Susan Glaspell I believe had several small defining moments leading to the one larger defining moment, which brings together all of them together. The defining moment is the discovery of the dead bird hidden in the pretty red box, this leads back to smaller points such as her sewing and the bird cage. “ Here’s some red. I expect this has got sewing things in it. (Brings out a fancy box.) What a pretty box. Looks like something somebody would give you. Maybe her scissors are in here. (Opens box. Suddenly puts her hand to her nose.) Why—(Mrs. Peters bends nearer, then turns her face away.) There’s something wrapped up in this piece of silk.” “It’s the bird” ” (Glaspell, 2011, p. 144),…

    • 1158 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Powerful Essays

    Trifles By Susan Glaspell Sparknotes
    • 1980 Words
    • 8 Pages

    Trifles By Susan Glaspell Sparknotes

    John Wright, a farmer from a small country town, is found murdered in his bed; a thick piece of rope is bound tightly around his neck. His wife, a peaceful and passive woman, is held as a suspect for the unlawful death. The killing baffles investigators; although a gun is established in the home, the weapon of John Wright’s demise is a piece of rope (Glaspell 5). This intriguing murder-mystery is the plot of the one-act play, Trifles, which was written in 1918 by Susan Glaspell. The tragedy is loosely based on a true story Glaspell covered while working as a journalist in 1900 (Reuben 4).…

    • 1980 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    What Are The Symbols In Trifles By Susan Glaspell
    • 526 Words
    • 3 Pages

    What Are The Symbols In Trifles By Susan Glaspell

    Birds are beautiful creatures of nature, each different in their own way. The uniqueness of their appearance helps people identify what type of birds they are. By identifying the bird, people discover what it eats, what it's known for and it's lifestyle. The canary in Trifles is a lively,bright yellow bird that sings. Just like the canary Mrs.Wright was a cheerful, well dressed and put together woman. A woman capable of attracting many admirers. Mrs. Wright lived a happy and joyful life singing songs through out the day. Although she was full of life, things completely changed for her when she married…

    • 526 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Isolation In Susan Glaspell's Trifles
    • 587 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Isolation In Susan Glaspell's Trifles

    Susan Glaspell’s Trifles explores the loss of companionship and the psychological effect that isolation can have on a person through the quiet conversation of Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters. Glaspell writes, “MRS. HALE [Not as if answering that.] I wish you'd seen Minnie Foster when she wore a white dress with blue ribbons and stood up there in the choir and sang. [A look around the room.] Oh, I wish I'd come over here once in a while! That was a crime! That was a crime! Who's going to punish that?” (Glaspell) This quote illustrates for the reader the effects that prolonged isolation has had on Mrs. Wright. We are able to see a different version of her, one which was outgoing and gregarious. It is hard for even Mrs. Hale, who has known Mrs. Wright her whole life,…

    • 587 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Justice Is Served In Susan Glaspell's Trifles
    • 774 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Justice Is Served In Susan Glaspell's Trifles

    Justice is served, a three word sentence that holds to be true and false at the same time. The true definition of justice can be hidden behind the eye of the beholder. In Susan Glaspell's play Trifles Mr. John Wright is strangled in the middle of the night. His wife seems to know nothing of the murder, nor does she seem concerned about the death of her husband. She is considered the prime suspect from the beginning. The Sheriff, his wife, Mr. and Mrs. Hale, and the county attorney are dissecting the crime scene to determine what happened on that dreadful night. The men and women in Glaspell's play have vital roles in solving the mystery of John Wright’s death.…

    • 774 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Trifles By Susan Glaspell Summary
    • 229 Words
    • 1 Page

    Trifles By Susan Glaspell Summary

    Your opinion of “Trifles” by Susan Glaspell is accurate, because it can be interpreted in various ways. The theme that stood out is gender differences. For example, Mr. Hale and Mr. Peters are serious and determined investigators that arrive to investigate the crime scene for evidence and they have brought their wives along. Mr. Hale and Mr. Peters frustrate their wives with their sexist comments towards Mrs. Wright’s housekeeping skills and the fact that there is nothing downstairs to investigate because it’s nothing but kitchen gadgets. The man’s head upstairs to investigate the crime scene in search for forensic evidence to solve the crime, but in the meantime, their wives are downstairs waiting and they began to notice the dim house…

    • 229 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
    Read More