Susan Glaspell\'s \

2 Pages 547 Words

In Susan Glaspell’s “Trifles,” the women are treated as if they are inferior. It seems like the men take nothing the women say seriously. The men like to make fun of the women every chance they get. These notions are revealed many times throughout the story, as early as the 27th line of the story. Mrs. Peters says, “Oh, her fruit; did it freeze. She worried about it when it turned so cold (Glaspell 876.)” The sheriff replies, “Well, can you beat the women! Held for murder and worryin’ about her preserves (Glaspell 877.)” This type of ridicule happens throughout the story for no apparent reason.

The next example of the men treating the women in a feministic manner is when the men hear the women talking about the quilt that Mrs. Wright was piecing. Mrs. Hale says, “I wonder if she was goin’ to quilt or just knot it?(Glaspell 879 )” The sheriff says sarcastically, “ They wonder if she was going to quilt in or just knot it (Glaspell 879.)” Then all the men start to laugh, and you know that the women feel embarrassed. It seems like anything that the women say is never good enough for the men. After every word that the women say, the men put them down and make a mockery of them. Mrs. Hale resents the fact that the men do not respect their thoughts and remarks. For some reason Mrs. Peters takes up for them in that instance saying, “Of course they’ve got awful important things on their minds (Glaspell 879.)

In my opinion, the women are the ones who solve the crime. Mrs. Peters is the one who finds the birdcage in the cupboard, and this is a key piece of evidence in this case. The sheriff and the county attorney do not even waste their time searching through the bottom floor of the house and the kitchen. The sheriff says, “Nothing here but kitchen things (Glaspell 876.)” If they would have, they would have found the birdcage with the broken hinges, and the dead bird in her sewing supp...