A Jury of Her Peers Character Analysis Essay Example

A JURY OF HER PEERS - A CHARACTER ANALYSIS As in the case of most, if not all, good allegorical stories, the primary impact of the tale is strongly influenced by the author’s detailed characterization of the setting, as well as the characters’ feelings and passions. Certainly such is the case in Susan Glaspell’s story “A Jury of Her Peers”. Here the reader sees a richness of characterization and setting that is elusive at first reading, but becomes clearer as the story evolves. In the final analysis, it becomes clear just who the jury is and the outcome of their collective verdict. It is by the use of allegorical and metaphorical rhetoric that the tension of the story is maintained so very well. Initially the reader is introduced to a woman, Mrs. Hale, who first seems cast as a central character, if not the central focus of the story’s plot. By use of this literary diversion, the reader is intentionally misled by focusing on the details of the patterns of her life and her overall guiding thought processes. For example, the reader is shown the concept of Mrs. Hale’s inherent instinct for “neatness,” “her bread all ready for mixing, half the flour sifted and half unsifted.” Although this appears as a seemingly ordinary detail, it later becomes a key point as the plot develops, in that this trait seems to be directly opposite the nature of the accused. Mrs. Hale is shown to be a person of neatness and detail; no job is to be left unfinished, and high importance is attached to keeping a “proper” household. She is shown to be a strong woman, a woman of principle, who is concerned, if not outright ashamed, of her failure to be a good neighbor. In direct comparison to Mrs. Hale, the reader meets her fellow conspirator, Mrs. Peters, the wife of the sheriff. It is interesting to note that while the author makes it clear that Mrs. Hale is well suited for her role in life, that of a farmer’s wife, Mrs. Peters seems to be ill at ease being the wife of a lawman. She