Gender In The Play Trifles

In today’s society, women can be most anything that they aspire to be. However, this has not always been the case. A woman was previously defined by her marital status and the social ranking of her husband. Overwhelmingly notable in the play Trifles is the suppression of women by their male counterparts. If there were no perceived gender expectations, the base of this conflict would be lost; furthermore, there would be no plot. Therefore, the main conflict originates and develops through differences of gender-based roles, perception, and connections.
Gender roles were crucial components that were traditionally supported. The women of this play were forced to abide by these unspoken rules, while the men followed seemingly happily. To perform jobs viewed as difficult and …show more content…
Evidence that would have helped to solve the case was hidden in the minute trifles. It was quite apparent to the ladies what had happened and why it had happened. At one point, they were inspecting the quilt that Mrs. Wright had begun. During their examination, the men walked downstairs. “They wonder if she was going to quilt it or just knot it!” the Sheriff exclaimed after hearing their discussion (Glaspell 606). Then, it continues on to point out that the ladies felt humiliated. These knots were a symbol of the knotted rope used to kill Mr. Wright, which the women noticed. However, the men saw it as unimportant and dismissed it as nothing. Not only could this have given them additional evidence, but also it could have shown them the true motive. Equally important, the house was a total disaster. To the group of men, this showed that Mrs. Wright was an incompetent housekeeper and a poor excuse for a wife, whereas the women saw a distraught soul. Since the men had no experience with being a woman or a housekeeper, they had no idea what it would take for Mrs. Wright to behave in this