Trifles

Name
Instructor
Course
Date
Trifles
Susan Glaspell is one of the most famous writers in the world. Her most popular work and one of the greatest works of American theater is the one-act play called ‘Trifles.’ In the play, a woman, Mrs. Wright, murders her husband and the law enforcement officials come to her house for investigations that would make the preferred charge against her succeed. They were looking for the motive behind the killing, currently called the mens rea part of a crime that has to be proved in a murder case. However, two women, who accompanied the officials and who knew Mrs. Wright, sabotaged their mission. The reason why they subverted justice was that they felt that justice would not be served in the patriarchal society because the suspect in the case was a woman, they defined justice differently than the society, and feminism arose among them.
One of the things that made Mrs. Peters and Mrs. Hale decide to subvert justice by hiding the evidence is the belief that justice would not be served. The murder took place in an era whereby women knew that they were regarded as second-class citizens. Men dominated the law enforcement agency and almost every other field. They would not give a fair trial to a guilty woman, especially one who was guilty of murdering a man. If the women had a guarantee that Mrs. Wright would go through a fair trial, maybe they would have shown the law enforcement officials the motive behind the killing. However, this could not be guaranteed, and as such, the women decided to counter the patriarchal law (Mael 281).

Therefore, they reached their decision for fear of injustice against Mrs. Wright.
Another thing that made the women decide to hide the evidence is that they defined justice in a new way. They considered everything that Mrs. Wright went through when her husband was alive, and they felt that by locking her up for murdering her husband, justice would not be served. They felt that since Mr. Wright hurt her so much, she had already faced imprisonment. The caged bird symbolized the caged Mrs. Wright. Just as the caged bird could not enjoy the things it loved like flying, the caged Mrs. Wright was not allowed to sing. They felt that justice was served when her husband was murdered. To them, justice is being free from oppression, and that is what Mrs. Wright deserved after years of suffering in the hands of her husband. Therefore, they decided to subvert what the society would view as justice to have their version of justice, which they believed was fair, to prevail.
Another thing that is involved in the women’s change of attitude is feminism. They hated the way the men in their lives demeaned and despised them. Being in the same house with them for the same mission gave them a chance to prove that they were equal to or better than their husbands were. By hiding the evidence that would otherwise incarcerate Mrs. Wright, they did not only feel good for helping Mrs. Wright, but they also felt good as they felt superior or equal to the men.
As shown, the play is a masterpiece that approaches issues from different perspectives. In the play, the women decided to hide evidence that would incarcerate one of their own for different reasons. They reached their decision because they felt that justice would not be served efficaciously in their patriarchal society, the woman had already faced imprisonment before in the hands of her late husband, and feminism arose in them making them want to prove that they were equal to the men or better.

Works Cited
Mael, Phyllis. “” Trifles”. The Path to Sisterhood.” Literature/Film Quarterly 17.4 (1989): 281.