Trifles was written in 1916 by Susan Glaspell. The setting of the story was the early 1900's when society was based on patriarchy. Men were viewed as superior and women in society were treated as second class citizens, with limited opportunities and few rights. The main focus for women was to serve their husband, raise their family, be a good housekeeper and cook. The author defined the roles of the characters according to the reality of that time frame, with the theme of male superiority and dominance obvious throughout the story. In describing the characters, the author begins defining roles and identities. George Henderson, County Attorney, Sheriff Henry Peters, and Lewis Hales, the neighbor, are the men and Mrs. Peters and Mrs. Hale are the women. Although the women are the protagonists in the story, we do not know their first names. They have no real identity, only that of being married to Henry Peters and Lewis Hale. From the beginning of the story, the women are submissive to the men. The author presents Mrs. Peters and Mrs. Hale as being timid, walking in to the house slowly, standing together in the doorway, almost like they are waiting for permission to enter. They don't walk in to the house until the County Attorney invites them to come to the fire (Glaspell 1475). The men do not seem to acknowledge the women in the first few pages of the story, do not include them in their serious conversation or solicit their opinions. The men in Trifles treat the women in a dismissive manner, typical of that time. When Lewis stated the reason he was going to talk with John was about getting a telephone, Lewis stated "I didn't know as what his wife wanted made much of a difference to John" (1475). He opinion apparently did not matter. When looking for evidence, the County Attorney suggests going upstairs to look around and looking in the barn, convinced that there was nothing of significance in the kitchen.. The Sheriff then states that there is "Nothing here but kitchen things" (1477). Since women work in the kitchen, the things in it became insignificant. The men continued with dismissing the women's concerns as unimportant when they discussed the broken fruit jars. Lewis Hale stated, " Well, women are used to worrying over trifles" (p.1477), things that have little importance or value. This implies that they do not have anything important to worry about.

Works Cited

Glaspell, Susan. "Trifles." The American Tradition in Literature (concise). Ed. George B. Perkins and Barbara Perkins. Boston: McGraw-Hill Higher Education, 2009. 1475-1484.