Susan Glaspell s Trifles - 1220 Words

Trifles Symbolism Essay Symbols are important, especially in literature. They have been known to inspire hope and life, in turn inspiring some of the most profound actions in the history of the world. Yet, humanity’s statement to symbols goes beyond us finding meaning in innominate or non-human objects. People assign humanity into objects, almost a part of themselves. This concept is clearly demonstrated in Susan Glaspell’s play, Trifles. The work contains many element of symbolism that make important and relieving comments on the characters of the play and the themes of the story. One of the first symbols introduced in the work, Mrs. Wright’s apron is deeply symbolic of her personal struggle in her home and marriage. Physically, the apron†¦show more content†¦While the apron symbolizes, the domestic restrictions placed upon women, the canary represents the societal limitations that women were also held to during the twentieth century. Throughout the drama, Mrs. Wright and the canary share many similarities. For example, Mrs. Hale, the wife of Mr. Hale, describes that Mrs. Wright â€Å"was kind of like a bird herself—sweet and pretty, but kind of timid and—fluttery† (185). Overall, the quotation describes Mrs. Wright as a gentle and submissive woman, the type of woman society expected her to be. In addition, although Mrs. Hale compares her to a bird in a favorable manner, she also defines Mrs. Wright as a woman that is fragile and uncappable of providing for herself, another social stereotype that women were subject to. Ulti mately, however, the rigid social expectations for women served to reiterate their role in the home and to further confine them to the homestead itself, especially as society typically objectified and trivialized women, celebrating the conforming wife while condemning women to have their wings clipped by society’s standards. In this way, beyond her personality, Mrs. Wright becomes even more synonymous with the canary, an estranged creature confined behind bars as an aesthetic spectacle that is unable to sing an independent song. Lastly, Mrs., Wright’s quilt is directly symbolic of the empathetic relationship representative of the daily experiences of the woman, her namesake trifles, and serves toShow MoreRelatedTrifles : Susan Glaspell s Trifles940 Words   |  4 PagesWhat is a trifle? A trifle is something that has little to no importance (dictionary.com). For instance, the color of your nails would be considered a trifle. In Trifles by Susan Glaspell, women are criticized and made fun of by men because of the little things they worry about, such as the color of their nails or their hair. This exhibits the gender role difference portrayed during the play’s time period. The central conflict is what the plot is centered around. In Trifles, the central conflictRead MoreSusan Glaspell s Trifles 1732 Words   |  7 PagesSusan Glaspell (1876-1948) was an American-born Pulitzer Prize winning writer of both plays and fiction. Glaspell came from humble beginnings and went on to study at Drake Uni versity and the University of Chicago. Much of Glaspell s work dealt with the relationships between men and women and the negative effects they have on women. In Glaspell s play Trifles, it is revealed that the operations of patriarchy are just an illusion that men have created to make themselves feel superior to womenRead MoreSusan Glaspell s Trifles 1577 Words   |  7 Pagesfeminism are published. One of those is ‘Trifles’ by Susan Glaspell as the American feminist movement addressed feminism at that time (Manuel, 57). There are several factors in Trifles representing the disadvantages of absence of feminism and the importance of feminism such as setting and situation. First, the setting, a first factor, implies the importance of feminism. In Trifles, the main setting is an isolated rural farmhouse. From the line 9 in Trifles, Mr.Hale mentioned the husband as a passiveRead MoreSusan Glaspell s Trifles 3309 Words   |  14 Pagesit’s all just a different kind of the same thing† (561) is a line spoken in Susan Glaspell’s play, Trifles. Writers look at the world around them and envision the way it should be. They take bits and pieces of their life’s landscape, add a liberal dose of surreal ideology and finally toss in human oppressions. To that end, the writer hopes to create a memorable character that can touch the human soul for eternity. Susan Glaspell, a writer in the early twentieth century, lived during a time when womenRead MoreSusan Glaspell s Trifles Essay1460 Words   |  6 PagesAn Analysis of Susan Glaspell Trifles The play, Trifles by Susan Glaspell shows her preoccupation with gender and sex roles as notions of culture. The author is spells out the treatment of women as mere trifles in the society, as less important when compared to men. This calls for the questioning of the role of both men and women in the society with regard to the value and devalue given to perspective and knowledge. The reader should thus realize that women have an important role to play in theRead MoreSusan Glaspell s Trifles Essay2025 Words   |  9 Pagescoming?† (Welty qtd. In Literature ). Trifles is a short play, by Susan Glaspell that was written in the 20th century when women were possession of the husband. The division between men and women in the play not just mentally or emotionally but it was also physically , and that symbolizes the different between genders at this time. Susan Glaspell shows that through her characters in this play. Glaspell uses the characters (Mr. Wright and Mrs. Wright) to prove how men wereRead MoreSusan Glaspell s `` Trifles ``924 Words   |  4 Pagesher hope for children, leaving her baron in her womb and her heart. He was a control maniac and demanded power in every aspect of this poor woman’s life; No Children, No Song, No Friends; she had nothing, which meant nothing to lose. In Susan Glaspell’s drama, â€Å"Trifles†, we explore the gender inequality between men and women of that time and why that has such a large influence on the murder investigation. The women in this novel and of this time period seemed to have hope pre-marriage, Mrs. WrightRead MoreAn Analysis Of Susan Glaspell s Trifles 983 Words   |  4 Pagespreconception someone makes based on gender, race, or religion that in this case is by gender, and affects women based on their expected gender roles. Women endlessly have expectations that go along with being a wife, mother, or simply a female. In Trifles by Susan Glaspell, 1955 by Alice Walker, and Girl by Jamaica Kincaid women are stereotyped by men and told to follow unwritten but expected roles such as being seen and not heard. As well as how they present themselves, their behavior, and tasks they needRead MoreSusan Glaspell s The Play Trifles1410 Words   |  6 Pages The play Trifles by Susan Glaspell is a very powerful play that conveys a strong meaning to the audience. The meaning that Susan Glaspell conveys through this play is the importance of women to stick together and rise up against the suppression of their gender. This message can be felt strongly while reading this play. Susan Glaspell does an outstanding job incorporating this message into an interesting, captivating plot. This play was written around the time where woman’s social equality wasRead MoreSusan Glaspell s Play Trifles870 Words   |  4 PagesIn the Susan Glaspell s play Trifles, gender plays a huge roll in everyday life. Trifles is an exemplary example of the war between male and female. It creates a scene where women are less deserving than the men. Women are used as stepping stones or told to remain dedicated to the male power. Females are the lesser creatures compared to the men who have the power. The play paints a scene where women are in compliance to this unwritten code of conduct expected for them. Towards the end of the play