Analysis of Trifles by Susan Glaspell Essay - 811 Words

Trifles is a play with a unified plot. Although there are verbal flashbacks to the events of the day of the murder of John Wright, the plays entire plot begins and ends in a span of one day. The author also extends the unified plot to create a single setting (the farmhouse kitchen). The plot centers on John Wrights murder. Mrs. Wright is the main suspect; an investigation is taking place as to the motive or reason for the crime. The Sheriff, Mr. Hale and the County Attorney are introduced first to the audience. They are investigating the crime scene. The women, Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters, accompany the men to gather whatever of Mrs. Wrights belongings that she needs in jail. This exposition turns ironic when the women end†¦show more content†¦Mrs. Peters, well call her the antagonist, repeatedly brings up the fact that the men are only doing their job and that the law will determine Mrs. Wrights fate. Mrs. Hale, on the other hand, as the protagonist, resents the mens sneaking and snooping around. Now she turns the mens stereotype of women against them. She feels guilty about not being around the Wrights farmhouse more often. The climax of the play unfolds as the women find an empty birdcage with a broken hinge. As the two women speculate why it was empty, Mrs. Hale describes Mrs. Wright to Mrs. Peters as she knew her when they were single women. The suspects maiden name was Minnie Foster. She was a beautiful songstress. A voice that was muted when she became Mrs. Wright. When Mrs. Hale finds a dead bird in Mrs. Wrights sewing box, she soon recognizes the obvious reason why John Wright was murdered. The audience sees character motivation in Mrs. Wright. Mr. Wright was a man who used silence and coldness to control and mold his wife into someone he thought she ought to be. He killed the singing bird, which was a symbol for Mrs. Wright as Minnie Foster. In an indirect way, he killed her joy of singing, her spirit, keeping her in her own cage which she can not escape from. Unless she got rid of what (or who) was holding her prisoner. As she comes up with her own judgments, Mrs. HaleShow MoreRelatedScript Analysis of Trifles by Susan Glaspell910 Words   |  4 PagesScript Analysis of â€Å"Trifles† by Susan Glaspell Summary   In the play Trifles by Susan Glaspell, there are five characters, three men and two women.   They are in a house where the murder of Mr. Wright took place the day before.   The men are trying to find evidence to name a killer or motivation to name Mrs. Wright as the murderer.   While the men are downstairs, the women occupy themselves with looking around the kitchen and living room.   They take note of Mrs. Wrights canned fruit and the factRead MoreAnalysis Of Trifles By Susan Glaspell846 Words   |  4 PagesSociety has put abnormal standards between women and men. 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The writer opens up the story by explaining the situation of Mrs. Wright, a middle aged woman who is being accused of murdering her husband. The crime scene is a mess. A sheriff, the prosecuting attorney and their wives are looking in to the gruesome death that occurred upstairs in the Wright household. It is immediately found that the men focus their attention