An Examination of Symbolism in Susan Glaspell's 'Trifles' Play

This essay provides a comprehensive analysis of the symbolism employed by Susan Glaspell in her play 'Trifles,' focusing on the division between male and female psychology and the societal constraints placed upon women. The essay examines key symbols, including the canary and its cage, representing Minnie Wright's suppressed spirit and the constraints of her marriage; the red box, symbolizing the romantic and conjugal relationship; the broken fruit jars, reflecting the emotional coldness of the household and the breaking of Minnie's spirit; and the rope, which serves as the murder weapon and represents the emotional strangulation Minnie experienced. Through these symbols, the essay argues that Glaspell effectively highlights the sufferings of women in a male-dominated society and the ways in which they sacrifice their dreams. The essay references the work of Ben-Zvi (1992) and Glaspell's (1916) play 'Trifles' to support its analysis.

Running head: SYMBOLS IN 'TRIFLES' BY SUSAN GLASPELL
Symbols in 'Trifles' by Susan Glaspell
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1SYMBOLS IN 'TRIFLES' BY SUSAN GLASPELL
Susan Glaspell in her ‘Trifles’ has focused on discussing the division between the
psychology of the men and women. The social roles of these two categories have allowed to see
different aspects of Minnie’s life from different points of view. In this play the playwright has
shown that the women need the sense of community as they cannot handle the loneliness
whereas the men can cope up with the solitude. The author named Ben-Zvi, L. (1992) has
correctly pointed out the situation of the women of that time by stating “Women who kill evoke
fear because they challenge societal constructs of femininity-passivity, restraint, and nurture”. In
this particular play, Susan Glaspell has used a huge number symbols to present this particular
theme of feminism. In these symbol, the images of bird cage, canary, rope, red box and broke
fruit jars seem to be the key symbols which connects to the character of Mrs. Minnie Foster
Wright.
The symbol canary and its cage are quite frequent images presented in this play. The little
yellow song bird is the representation of Mrs. Minnie Foster Wright. Just like the canary, the
bright young woman loves to sing in the church choir and enjoys her lonesome as well as
isolated house. Minnie owns this bird and experiences pleasure in its songs and connects herself
with her past when she was not married. This particular songbird in the symbolic analogue
representing Minnie, a free-spirited and single woman happy with her life singing. Minnie is
associated with the idea of being timid and fluttery like a canary by Mrs. Hale. She is suffering
from her the behaviour of her husband’s cold and heartless nature. She is associated with dead
canary in her danger “Wouldn't they just laugh! Getting all stirred up over a little thing like a—
dead canary”. It represents as if the free-spirited girl had died and Mrs. Wright has taken the
place of her.

2SYMBOLS IN 'TRIFLES' BY SUSAN GLASPELL
The symbol of red box also has a great connection representing the romantic and conjugal
relationship between Mr. and Mrs. Wright. From a long period of time, red has been
associated with love and passion representing the urge of the couples to share
good relationship in their lives. In the case of Minnie, her unhappy conjugal life does not
relate to the love or passion but blood and her associated with her little pet. In the pretty red box,
the woman has laid her beloved little dead canary actually represents the emotions of Minnie.
The little pet has long aroused this passion and emotions in Minnie that her over bearing husband
had stifled. It is the representation of love that the little pet had aroused in the minds of the lonely
woman.
According to Ben-Zvi (1992), “they make ready use of hyperbole, invention, and
supposition, all filtered through one of Glaspell's common devices in her column: a lively, often
opinionated persona”. It can be seen in the symbol of the broken fruit jar in the household.
Minnie in this play by Susan Glaspell has been associated with the responsibilities in the kitchen
and sewing things. The broken fruit jars that have frozen in the cold is also representative of the
breaking of Mr. Wright. The cold weather outside freezes her jars and the inner coldness of the
household has broken the spirit of Minnie just like the jars wasting all her musical talents in the
lonely and barren household. It is the cold weather of the house that symbolises the treatment of
the estranged and insensitive husband to the wife.
The symbol of rope is one of the most important symbol in this [articular play. This is
due to the fact that it represents the murder weapon of the frustrated wife to kill her ill-treating
husband. Towards the end of the play when the women of neighbourhood find out the crime,
piece the whole situation together and state 'Somebody slipped a rope round his neck and
strangled him and you didn't wake up?' (Glaspell, 1916). This rope with which Minnie has killed

3SYMBOLS IN 'TRIFLES' BY SUSAN GLASPELL
her husband strangling like she had strangled her through marriage. It is an act of symbolic of the
unyielding emotional strangulation imposed upon the woman by the cold and heartless husband.
Therefore, it can be concluded that the symbols used in the play ‘Trifles’ by Susan
Glaspell, are perfectly supporting of the feminism theme. These reveal the sufferings of the
women in the male dominated society and how they kill their dreams for the sake of their
household.

4SYMBOLS IN 'TRIFLES' BY SUSAN GLASPELL
References:
Ben-Zvi, L. (1992). “Murder, she wrote”: the genesis of Susan Glaspell’s Trifles. na.
Glaspell, S. (1916). Trifles. In Plays [Project Gutenberg eBook]. Retrieved from
https://www.gutenberg.org/files/10623/10623-h/10623-h.htm#TRIFLES