Trifles By Susan Glaspell Essay

The way people look at life shapes their thoughts and actions. Men and women look at things extremely different than each other and that changes how they take upon a task. In the play Trifles by Susan Glaspell, the women in the play look at the small things and the men look at the bigger picture which leads them to different assumptions; however, each view has its positive and negative aspects. Women typically look at the less important things and try to add them up together. Women are able to notice all the little things in life and question what every little thing means. In the play Trifles, the women notice things like the birdcage and freezer being empty which leads them to the conclusion that Mrs. Wright was abused by her husband and eventually had enough of him and killed him. The women in the play take a small thing and turn it into multiple questions, “Seems funny to think of a bird here. But she must have had one, or why would she have a cage? I wonder what happened to it” (1010). By not overlooking the little things, they are able to take small assumptions from each and add them together to figure out who killed Mr. Wright. Although it may

They see the world how it is and do not go in-depth about why things are the way that they are. They think it is pointless to look at the small things and make fun of women for it, “Well, women are used to worrying over trifles” (1007). The men are only concerned with the bedroom of the Wrights’ house, where they found Mr. Wright’s body, and do not try to look around other rooms of the house for clues. Although current day detectives would not be so careless, this is a major downfall in their investigation. Only looking at the big picture or the main clue, the bedroom and rope, they are unable to find a motive to kill and have to end their investigation. In this case men’s way of thinking does not help them succeed, however; that is not always what