Saturday, July 7, 2012

What are some examples of the attitude that the men have towards the women in the play "Trifles"?

The men in Susan Glaspell's Trifles believe that the issues they care about are more important than the issues that women care about. The men arrive at the Wright farm in order to investigate a murder. The women come to care for their friend in prison. Because of this unwillingness to consider the women's emotions and concerns, the men miss out on vital clues that reveal the means and motives of the murder.
These attitudes are evident within the first few pages of the play as Mrs. Peters notices that Minnie's fruit preserves froze and the jars broke. The Sherrif laughs at this observation, saying,

SHERRIFF: Well, can you beat the women! Held for murder and worryin' about her preserves.

The truth of the matter is that Mrs. Peters and Mrs. Hale are not so much concerned about the preserves as they are about Mrs. Wright's wellbeing. They know that the preserves were something that Mrs. Wright was concerned about, and her concern was well grounded.
The men also mock the women for admiring the quilt Minnie Wright was making and wondering whether or not she was going to quilt it or knot it. At the end of the play, the men's investigation has revealed no new information. The County Attorney makes this last jab at the women:

COUNTY ATTORNEY: (facetiously) Well, Henry, at least we found out that she was not going to quilt it. She was going to - what is it you call it, ladies?
MRS. HALE: (her hand against her pocket) We call it - knot it, Mr. Henderson.

In this moment, Mrs. Hale is using the phrase "knot it" as a double entendre. Mrs. Wright was knotting her blanket in the same way that she knotted the rope around her husband's neck. If the men had paid attention to Minnie's work, they may have understood Minnie's mental and emotional distress. Instead, they continued to be ignorant of what took place at the Wright farm.

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