NORASHIKIN BT ISMAIL A 137545 FACULTY OF EDUCATION SKBS 1023 CRITICAL APPRECIATION Analyze the play Trifles by Susan Glaspell.

Your analysis should focus on characterization, conflicts and setting.

Trifles is one of the Susan Glaspell famous play which was published in the 19th century. She chose to write about the inequality of the sexes and the inability of women to live their own lives without relying on the men in her writing. It is a kind of exposition to the new ways of thinking of the society because during that time in United State, males dominated all aspects of life except for caring for children and home whereas women had not been granted for their works. Their domains is limited to the home and primarily the children. From the title itself Trifles, symbolize men dismiss women as unimportant. It is a murder mystery and searching the nature of truth. The theme of this play tell us about the strong power that man possesses can control the women and isolate them from independence and freedom.

From the Trifles, we can see there are number of characterization in different characters. One of them is round character. Round character means character with a depth and complexity in her life. Besides, there is also a dynamic character, a character whom changes as a result of conflicts. In this play for example, Mrs. Wright has both round and dynamic characters. Mrs. Wright or as known as Minnie Foster before she got married, is the wife of Mr. Wright whom had been strangled to death while he slept. Mrs. Wright is a woman who was once young, pretty and outgoing. She was more cheerful in her youth. Her clothes were more cheerful and she loves to sing. Mrs. Hale told Mrs. Peter: I wish youd seen Minnie Foster when she wore a white dress with blue ribbons and stood there in the choir and sang. But she falls in a loveless marriage with a stern, anti-social farmer, Mr. Wright. As a result of the gloom of her surroundings and her husband dispassion toward her, she lives in isolation, cause her to the brink of insanity. She just sticks with a caged song bird and brightly colored quilting to fending off her depression in her life. Her character had

changed as a result of the conflicts she had suffered in her life. Mrs. Hale describes her to Mrs. Peter: Wright was close. I think maybe thats why she kept so much to herself. She didnt even belong to the Ladies Aid. I suppose she felt she couldnt do her part, and then you dont enjoy things when you feel shabby. She used to wear pretty clothes and be lively, when she was Minnie Foster, one of the town girls singing in the choir. But thatoh, that was thirty years ago. Shecome to think of it, she was kind of like bird herselfreal sweet and pretty, but kind of timid andfluttery. Howshedidchange. Apart from that, there are also flat character in Trifles. Flat character means the character embodies one or two qualities. For instance is Mr. Wright. He was known as a good man. He didnt drink, trustable and had no debts. But, he also had been described as an anti-social, a hard and cold man. Mr. Hale told County Attorney: I spoke to Wright about it once before and he put me off, saying folks talked too much anyway, and all he asked was peace and quietI guess you know about how much he talked himself, but I thought maybe if I went to the house and talked about it before his wife, though I said to Harry that I didnt know as what his wife wanted made much difference to John Another evidence is when Mrs. Hale describes John Wright (Mr. Wright) to Mrs. Peter: Yesgood; he didnt drink, and kept his word as well as most, I guess, and paid his debts. But he was a hard man, Mrs. Peter. Just to pass the time of day with him [Shivers.] Like a raw wind that gets to the bone. Other characters that can be found in Trifles is static character. Static character means character who does not undergo substantial change or growth in the course of the story. For example is County Attorney. He started the play as a coroner whom investigates the murder case and end up the play still investigating the case. County Attorney told Mr. Peters: No, Peters, its all perfectly clear except a reason for doing it. But you know juries when it comes to women. If there was some definite thing. Something to show something to make a story abouta thing that would connect up with this strange way of doing it--. County Attorney told the Sheriff: Im going to stay here a while by myself. You can send Frank out for me, cant you? I want to go over everything. Im not satisfied that we cant do better.

The next analysis is about conflicts in Trifles. Conflicts are sort of difficulty that the characters encounter in their life. The first conflict in Trifles is man vs. man. It is about the struggle between two or more individuals. For example, the conflict between men and women, the difference of gender. Men happens to be more aggressive, analytical, rough, self-centered and dominating the women, contrast with the women who are more lenient, circumspect, intuitive and sensitive to the needs of others. Women were described as unimportant and just like slaves. Their roles limited to the children and home only. For example in Trifles, men characters dont respect women and tend to speak harshly to them. The conversation between County Attorney and Sheriff: COUNTY ATTORNEY: I guess well go upstairs firstand then out to the barn and around there. Youre convinced that there was nothing important herenothing that would point to any motive. SHERIFF: Nothing here but kitchen things. It shows the feminist criticism as a symbol of to minimize the importance of women in society. The men also criticize Mrs. Wrights skills of housekeeping and irking Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peter. MRS. HALE: Those towels get dirty awful quick. Mens hands arent always as clean as they might be. COUNTY ATTORNEY: Ah, loyal to your sex, I see. But you and Mrs. Wright were neighbors. I suppose you were friends, too. Apart from that, there are also conflicts on man vs. himself. It is about the internal struggle concerning emotion and decision in character. In Trifles, Mrs. Hale has this kind of conflicts against herself. She wonders if Mrs. Wright is really the murderer of her own husband, Mr. Wright and that become the conflicts in herself. Mrs. Hale talks to Mrs. Peter: MRS. HALE: Do you think she did it? MRS. PETER: Oh, I dont know. MRS. HALE: Well, I dont think she did it. Asking for an apron and her little shawl. Worrying about her fruit. Last but not least is conflicts man vs. nature. It is about the external struggle between man and element of nature. For instance, in Trifles Mrs. Wright encounter this conflicts with the environment around her. She is so lonely as her house is isolated. She also had no child and no companion even with her husband except for the caged singing

bird. She had problems with her emotional life. This turn her becoming desperate housewife. We can see the evidence from the Mrs. Hale story: MRS. HALE: I couldve come. I stayed away because it werent cheerfuland thats why I ought to have come. IIve never liked this place. Maybe because its down in a hollow and you dont see the road. I dunno what it is, but its a lonesome place and always was, I wish I had come over to se Minnie Foster sometimes. I can see now MRS. HALE: Not having children makes less workbut it makes quiet house, and Wright out to work all day, and no company when he did come in. Did you know John Wright, Mrs. Peters?

The last analysis is in the setting of the play. The setting is the physical and social context in which the action of a story occurs. In Trifles, there is time setting which tells when Mr. Wright had found death by Mr. Hale. Values, ideals and attitudes of people change with time and circumstances. It was in the morning and Mr. Hale got in the Mr. Wrights house at eight oclock. SHERIFF: Now, Mr. Hale, before we move things about, you explain to Mr. Henderson just what you saw when you came here yesterday morning. MR. HALE: I didnt hear or see anything; I knocked at the door, and still it was all quiet inside. I knew they must be up, it was past eight oclock. So I knocked again, and I thought I heard somebody say, Come in. I wasnt sure, Im not sure yet, but I opened the doorthis door Next is the setting of place. The setting of place answer where the setting has been set out or some important things that had happened in that place. In Trifles, the main setting for this play is a bleak and untidy kitchen. The kitchen shows where women always belong to in their daily life and where the discovery of the dead bird which is also the important evidence of the motive of the murder takes place. The place that the men never investigate. But the kitchen is in mess condition and like being disturbed. The evidence is in the first paragraph before the play happens: SCENE. The kitchen in the now abandoned farmhouse of John Wright, a gloomy kitchen, and left without having been put in orderunwashed pans under the sink, a loaf of bread outside the bread-box, a dish-towel on the tableother signs of incomplete work. Besides that, the setting of weather also occurs in this play. The weather tells us about the current season and the weather of the play occurs. In Trifles, the murder takes place during winter. It is really a freezing cold. The Sheriff told County Attorney:

Its just the same. When it dropped below zero last night I thought Id better send Frank out this morning to make a fire for usno use getting pneumonia with a big case on, but I told him not to touch anything except the stoveand you know Frank. The last setting is a social setting. It is about the committee life and which type of social life they belong to. In Trifles, the committee is mostly lives as a farmer. Both Mr. Wright and Mr. Hale are a farmer. Mr. Hale is a Mr. Wright neighbor. They lived in the rural area far from the town. Theyre lack of technology and depending others. The evidence is from both Mr. Hale and Mrs. Hale story. MR. HALE: Harry was going to ask her more questions but I said maybe we ought to let her tell her story first to the coroner, or the sheriff, so Harry went fast as he could to Rivers place, where theres a telephone. MRS. HALE: I couldve come. I stayed away because it werent cheerfuland thats why I ought to have come. IIve never liked this place. Maybe because its down in a hollow and you dont see the road. I dunno what it is, but its a lonesome place and always was, I wish I had come over to se Minnie Foster sometimes. I can see now

The Trifles is a very enjoyable play with many moral values that we can find. It helps the readers to open up their mind and dont bias towards gender. Both genders have their own ability, works and roles in life. The play ends with the character exiting the kitchen and the women announcing that they have determined Mrs. Wrights quilt making style. They emphasized that she knots it instead of quilts it, words denoting the way in which she killed her husband. Although the ending of the play like dangling, it gives the choice to the readers in judging whose the real murderer in the play between Mr. Wright and Mrs. Wright.