“Women are used to worrying over trifles” (Gaspell 1158). says Mr. Hale in Susan Glaspell’s 1916 play Trifles. By making this statement, he illustrations the frame of mind that spurs Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters into action, representing the feminism in the play’s time. As the play intertwined into Glaspell’s mind, America was challenging its opinions on women. Women were challenging woman’s suffrage as well as control over their own bodies through birth control (Womans Suffrage Movement…). States were slowly but surely moving toward progressive concepts of race and sex, forcing a steady change in the overall United States. Even though women were moving toward change, some women fought against moving forward, worried about what the future
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Hale, a character with no first name, is traditional farm wife. There is no straightforward characterization of her, but her actions toss in many indications about her life and knowledge. She is a woman that in contrast to the other characters, seems more free of thought and speech, she’s just so fierce! Mrs. Hale stands up for her morals, values, and beliefs. Throughout the play she also shows her loyalty to her friend, Minnie foster. She contradicted everything that the sheriff had to say about her. Mrs. Hale stops at nothing to defend Minnie. She isn't even frightened to stand up to men with authority, like the County Attorney. Early in the play, Mrs. Hale gets a little annoyed that he insults Mrs. Wright's housekeeping even though the murder suspect was suddenly taken from her house and thrown into jail. He says, “Dirty towels! Not much of a house keeper, would you say, ladies?” (Gaspell 1158). Her response was, “There’s a great deal of work to be done on a farm” (Gaspell 1158). Every time the Attorney tries to belittle Mrs. Wright, Mrs. Hale has a …show more content…
Hale believed that her friend had good reasoning for the crime committed, so she continued to defend her. She tried to hide the indication of rage in Mrs. Wright, by pulling out a stitch or two, on the quilt that are not sewn well. she states, “And look at this! It’s all over the place! Why, it looks as if she didn’t know what she was about!” (Gaspell 1161). She knew this could’ve been a sign of anger in Mrs. Wright. By her doing so, it is undoubtedly shown that Mrs. Hale is not satisfied with the way Mrs. Wright is being accused of murder when the County Attorney does not consider the initial probable reason for such an action, though, she expresses her reasons for her support for Mrs. Wright by saying, "Bad sewing always make me fidgety" (Gaspell 1161). Mrs. Hale was clearly frustrated with the structure of the Justice System of this time in America, when women were not equal to men in many features such as having freedom of speech and equal rights compared to
Hale, a character with no first name, is traditional farm wife. There is no straightforward characterization of her, but her actions toss in many indications about her life and knowledge. She is a woman that in contrast to the other characters, seems more free of thought and speech, she’s just so fierce! Mrs. Hale stands up for her morals, values, and beliefs. Throughout the play she also shows her loyalty to her friend, Minnie foster. She contradicted everything that the sheriff had to say about her. Mrs. Hale stops at nothing to defend Minnie. She isn't even frightened to stand up to men with authority, like the County Attorney. Early in the play, Mrs. Hale gets a little annoyed that he insults Mrs. Wright's housekeeping even though the murder suspect was suddenly taken from her house and thrown into jail. He says, “Dirty towels! Not much of a house keeper, would you say, ladies?” (Gaspell 1158). Her response was, “There’s a great deal of work to be done on a farm” (Gaspell 1158). Every time the Attorney tries to belittle Mrs. Wright, Mrs. Hale has a …show more content…
Hale believed that her friend had good reasoning for the crime committed, so she continued to defend her. She tried to hide the indication of rage in Mrs. Wright, by pulling out a stitch or two, on the quilt that are not sewn well. she states, “And look at this! It’s all over the place! Why, it looks as if she didn’t know what she was about!” (Gaspell 1161). She knew this could’ve been a sign of anger in Mrs. Wright. By her doing so, it is undoubtedly shown that Mrs. Hale is not satisfied with the way Mrs. Wright is being accused of murder when the County Attorney does not consider the initial probable reason for such an action, though, she expresses her reasons for her support for Mrs. Wright by saying, "Bad sewing always make me fidgety" (Gaspell 1161). Mrs. Hale was clearly frustrated with the structure of the Justice System of this time in America, when women were not equal to men in many features such as having freedom of speech and equal rights compared to