Susan Glaspell's A Jury of Her Peers

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Susan Glaspell's A Jury of Her Peers

The North wind is blowing in Dickson County on this cold, March morning, and in Susan Glaspell’s, “A Jury of Her Peers,” murder bring together a group of men and two women, with two separate agendas. The men’s group who includes: Mr. Hale; a witness, Mr. Peters; the sheriff, and Mr. Henderson; the county attorney are persistent in finding evidence to ensure a conviction of Minnie (Foster) Wright; wife of the victim, John Wright. However, the two women: Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters, wives of two of the men, create a bond with each other and with the absent Mrs. Wright, and take it upon themselves to hide what they have uncovered to protect Minnie from being convicted of 1st degree murder, even though the evidence points towards her guilt.

The actual order of events began yesterday, when Mr. Hale and his oldest son, Harry stopped by the Wright’s place to talk to Mr. Wright about interest in getting a telephone, but instead of speaking with him, they speak to his wife; Minnie and learn that John Wright is dead! After getting no cooperation from Mrs. Wright, as she sat in her rocker, wringing her apron, Mr. Hale had Harry go and retrieve the authorities, which brings us today. “Martha! Don’t keep folks waiting out here in the cold,” said her husband with an impatient voice (Susan Glaspell 586). Martha Hale had to drop everything she was doing, leaving her kitchen in disarray, just so that she could accompany her husband to the scene of John Wrights’ death to keep the sheriff’s wife company; and to help collect some belongings for the accused Mrs. Wright. And so the investigation begins.

As everyone approached the Wright’s home, which sat back in a hollow surrounded by trees, the looks from the...

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...s in Short Fiction 36.3 (1999): 291+. Humanities Module. ProQuest. Carl Sandburg College, Galesburg, IL. CSC Lib 28 Feb. 2008

Glaspell, Susan. “A Jury of Her Peers.” Fiction 100: An Anthology of Short Fiction. Ed. James H. Pickering. 11th ed. New Jersey: Pearson, 2007. 713-18.

Mustazza, Leonard. "Genetic Translation and Thematic Shift in Susan Glaspell’s 'Trifles' And 'A Jury of Her Peers'." Studies in Short Fiction 26.4 (Fall 1989): 489. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Carl Sandburg College, Galesburg, IL. CSC Lib 28 February 2008.

Ortiz, Lisa. "A Jury of Her Peers (Criticism)." Answers.Com. 28 Feb. 2008 .

Cano VII

Stormer, Nathan. "To Remember, To Act, To Forget: Tracing Collective Remembrance Through "A Jury Of Her Peers".” Communication Studies 54.4 (2003): 510-529. Humanities Module. ProQuest. Carl Sandburg College, Galesburg, IL. CSC Lib 28 Feb. 2008

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