Trifles- Analyzing Literary Elements
Plot
In Trifles, two plots run parallel: the men have an off-stage story as they hunt for clues to the murder of
Mr. Wright: the women have an on-stage story as they unravel the life of Mrs. Wright. The tension in
the story’s plot has to do with the rate at which Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters come to understand what has
happened. Suspense builds as the two women, and the audience, figure out who killed Mr. Wright, and
why. The suspense is heightened by the moral dilemma of whether the women should conceal
incriminating evidence – and whether they’ll get caught doing it. Of course, one reason the men in the
story don’t figure out what happened is that they dismiss the things the women say as mere trifles.
Character
The characters of the play are the dynamic that reflects the conflicts, and the clue to our understanding.
Over the course of the play, Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters change, feeling less certain about their own
beliefs, disappointed in themselves for not being better friends to Mrs. Wright, and empathetic to her
desperate loneliness. The men don’t change (static characters). We learn about all of the characters
through their conversations, especially in the way the conversations change when the men are involved.
Setting/Environment
The setting of Trifles helps us understand character and also moves the plot along. The play takes place
in an empty farmhouse, but the setting is more complicated than that. The men go to the bedroom
where the murder occurred, while the women focus on the kitchen. Both the men and the women note
the disheveled condition in which Mrs. Wright left it, yet the women are protective of her as well. They
also come to understand that the mess (which is part of the setting) may be a sign of the “sudden
feeling” the sheriff and attorney are looking for, but too arrogant to notice. Mrs. Hale understands the
isolation of the farm life, and of the personality of Mr. Wright. Mrs. Peters must come around on that
issue, being a newcomer.
Symbols
Certain symbols are repeated in Trifles. The cold is brutal and unrelenting. The characters continually try
to avoid the cold and it is a constant topic of conversation. Mr. Wright is depicted as being cold and
unloving, making the cold a clear symbol of a life without affection or even company. Other symbols
might be Mrs. Wright’s quilt pieces, the choice between quilting and knotting, the dead bird and broken
birdcage, the preserves (or trifles), and even the half-done chores. Each of these items is more fraught
with meaning than it first seems.
Possible Topics/themes
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Sexism can make people blind to the truth.
People may take desperate measures when they feel entrapped in a loveless marriage, in a cold
and isolated house, or in a society that does not value them.
Someone who is a criminal by one set of social standards might be a victim according to another
set of social standards. Or, in other words, justice is not always the same as the rule of law.
At this point, focus on a potential theme from the play and then find some supporting lines that would
be supportive of that claim.
Developing a Thesis Statement
First and foremost, you are analyzing the elements of the work in order to arrive at an interpretation;
you should not be summarizing the work. If you start off with a thesis statement that argues for an
interpretation of the play’s meaning, you will guard against summary. Examples:
Summary:
In Trifles, the women notice evidence that the men do not.
Interpretation: In Trifles, the differences in the evidence the men and women notice suggest
different worldview and value systems.
The summary statement only tells what happened, the interpretative statement answers the question:
Why do the women notice evidence the men do not?
Summary:
Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters discover a birdcage and dead canary, which provide
clues to what actually happened to Mr. Wright.
Interpretation: When Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters discover a birdcage and a dead canary
wrapped in silk, they associated the silenced songbird with the joyless and
repressed life that might have motivated Mrs. Wright to murder her husband
and lessens the criminality of her act.
The summary is accurate, even a bit inquiring, but not interpretive. Can you write an entire essay on my
statement? Could anyone else see this differently? If the answer to both questions is yes, then you’re
probably writing an interpretation.
Starting with a specific prompt: How will this prompt affect our thesis development?
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In a conventional murder mystery, the point of the story is to figure out who the culprit is. The
mystery in Susan Glaspell’s Trifles is unconventional, as the culprit is apprehended before the
play begins. However, as Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters unravel the mystery of why the murder
took place, the play’s themes are revealed. Discuss how Susan Glaspell uses the mystery of
Trifles to reveal a theme of her play.
Deconstructing the prompt must take place in order to understand it. In this case, you are being asked
to consider a murder mystery plot not as the end itself but as a means of developing a theme.
Essentially, this play is not really about a murder, but the themes could not quite originate without the
murder. So, maybe Glaspell is asking us to reflect on the relationship between law and justice or to link
justice and punishment.
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Did Mrs. Wright do wrong in being her husband’s judge, jury, and executioner?
Was living with him punishment enough for her wrongdoing?
Did she choose a punishment that fit his “crime”?
These are the types of complex questions which will help you make an argumentative statement.
The Working Thesis
The first attempt at the thesis is called the working thesis. It is a start, but maybe rambling and not
quite refined. But, it moves you towards your argument.
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The murder mystery in Trifles is solved, but it is not so easy to answer the questions that the
mystery raises about law, justice, and punishment, and whether hard-and- fast rules that govern
human relationships are always appropriate.
However, does the play provide a conclusive answer to these questions? No. Perhaps a better route
may be that Glaspell is asking the audience/readers to explore these issues.
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In Trifles, the murder mystery is the means Glaspell uses to explore whether the rule of law is
always the same as justice.
Still not what would be considered a developed thesis, but it is an argument and claim about the
function of the play as a whole.