Stereotypes In Trifles By Susan Glaspell

“Trifles”, by Susan Glaspell, creates more stereotypes for male and female behavior than it unseats. Glaspell is entering male dominated literature of detective fiction. During this time period the men are the main characters, protagonists/antagonists, and usually solve the crime. This is the only major stereotype that is unseated because the women solve the murder mystery from Mrs. Wright trifles. They find all crucial elements that provided motive and explanation for murder such as the canary, birdcage, fruit preservatives and Mrs. Wrights quilt. To push this unseated stereotype back to male dominated literature, the men in this play are constantly condescending to the women. This is from the men not being able to perceive the importance …show more content…
One example of Susan Glaspell showing unrealistic ignorance, is the men disregard the little details of the kitchen. County Attorney: “(looking around) I guess we'll go upstairs first—and then out to the barn and around there, (to the SHERIFF) You're convinced that there was nothing important here—nothing that would point to any motive.” Sheriff: “Nothing here but kitchen things.” (1040). This is a stereotype of men; they cannot see anything important in womens trifles. The men just look over the “Kitchen things”, but in reality, these menial items hold the key to show motive of why Mrs. Wright killed Mr. Wright. In this story, the men are an attorney and sheriff. If this was real life, they would not look over these menial things. The men see the kitchen as a “mess” and cannot see that Mrs. Wright’s trifles are key to show motive and how she killed her husband. While the women take the time to study the “mess” and comment on Mrs. Wright's trifles, such as the jar of preserves. After ignoring the small details, the men scold the women on their trifles instead on focusing on the case. One of the many instances occurs when Mrs. Hale finds Mrs. Wright unfinished quilt. Mrs. Hale: “It's log cabin pattern. Pretty, isn't it? I wonder if she was goin' to quilt it or just knot it?” Sheriff: “They wonder if she was going to quilt it or just knot it!” (1043). The men make fun of the women because they were …show more content…
However, Glaspell also unseats a major stereotype that was heavily present in the detective fiction scene, male dominated literature, during the 1900’s. Men looked down upon the women, and were seen as housekeepers, child bearers, and were not regarded as intelligent. Mrs. Hale, and Mrs. Peters, in the play, unseat this stereotype against them as utterly wrong. They were able to solve the murder of Mr. Wright without much effort and were able to perceive the trifles left behind by Mrs. Wright. While the men are supposed to be detectives, they were unfit for the job and kept harassing the women. The men missed all the details in the kitchen and did not believe a woman could kill a man. Nevertheless, even if this stereotype is upset by women coming out on top, there are plenty more to push them back to where the norms of the time period. One of the pivotal quotes to hold back women is one of the women finding the quilt. Mrs. Hale: “It's log cabin pattern. Pretty, isn't it? I wonder if she was goin' to quilt it or just knot it?” Sheriff: “They wonder if she was going to quilt it or just knot it!” (1043). This pushes women back because no matter what they do, they are constantly criticized for their trifles and are not recognized for solving the murder. This is caused by the main stereotype created for men, the play portrays them as very rude and idiotic. Sheriff: “Nothing here but kitchen