Of Mice And Men Feminist Analysis

In today's society, we generally view upon everyone as equal beings who deserve equal rights. At the turn of the 20th century, this particular view didn?t exist. Men clearly dominated almost every aspect of life and women were often left with little importance. The Wright?s embody this view of roles in Susan Glaspell?s play Trifles. Mrs. Wright was a typical woman who suffered the mental abuse from her husband and was caged from life. In Trifles, a mixture of symbolism of oppression illustrates Mrs. Minnie Wright?s motives to kill her husband and to escape from imprisonment.

In today’s society, we generally view upon everyone as equal; however this view did not exist for decades. Throughout history, there were many instances showing that men dominated women and women were often seen as left with less important or treated as an inferior being. Women were often expected to be good mothers to their children as well as caretakers to their husband. After reading the play “Trifles” by Susan Glaspell, I was able to grasp the important facts about social views of women and their domestic roles. Glaspell’s play depicts the gender inequality which exists in the society, drawing significant attention to the societal values of women at that time. Although women’s roles are treated as unimportant, she depicts women’s

Gender roles throughout history have been portrayed in many works of literature. We imagine that in 2016 our world would be at its absolute best regarding the roles of women considering we just had our first woman from a major party run for the highest office in the nation. Unfortunately, we still seem to have a way to go. Oscar Wilde said, "Women have a much better time than men in this world; there are far more things forbidden to them." It has only been in the past few years that women have stood up and demanded equal pay and equal treatment. There are still many places in the world where women are still very oppressed. In Susan Glaspell 's "Trifles," written in 1916, the theme throughout is that the men are the smart, dominant ones, and therefore very chauvinistic, and the women only concern themselves with sewing and cleaning which is, therefore, insignificant and trifle. The women from the start of the play very clearly see clues to the murder that the men do not ever see. Glaspell tells the story of the murder of Mr. John Wright, who was found strangled in his bed. His wife Minnie is the main suspect. The men in the story, the County Attorney Mr. Henderson, the Sheriff Mr. Peters, and the neighbor who found the body, Mr. Hale, look for scientific clues and totally overlook what is right in front of them. In the 1900 's roles were clearly defined by the men and this is carried throughout the play. The women in this play are the unsung heroes while the men who are

John Steinbeck, the author of “Of Mice and Men”, takes the time to listen to the employees of the ranch he works at and captivates a woman's story into his novella. Curley’s wife’s dream is to live a lavish life as a famous movie actress. Unfortunately she never got to because of the society she lives in. Marrying Curley does not increase her chances any greater either. Curley’s wife is known as his possession and he refuses to let her converse with anyone on the ranch and isolates her. Thus it is difficult for her to achieve anything she desires. Curley’s wife is a representation of how women during the time period were not allowed to succeed in anything more than what their husband wants for them.

Wright's life in their hands to do with what they will.  Mrs. Peters and Mrs. Hale find the evidence needed to convict Minnie Wright and they suppress it.  They were women who understood the plight of loneliness and the death of a beloved pet.  Mrs. Hale understood that Mr. Wright was a hard man to live with and she knew that he had not only killed Mrs. Wright's bird but he had also killed the real Minnie Foster, the girl she had been.  The men in the story, Sheriff Peters, Mr. Hale, and the young unmarried County Attorney, see only surface things.  They believe that the motive for John's murder lies in the bedroom or in the barn.  The men flounder around ignorantly searching for something they will never find because they can not think as Minnie Wright did.  If the women had told them about the discovery of the dead bird, they would probably laugh and say that the women needed to go back to their quilting and their jellies.  The ragged and uneven sewing that suggests a misplaced state of mind in Minnie Wright would also have been laughed at.  The men wanted to find something concrete that would easily convince an all male jury but they never would.  To men, dead canaries are dead canaries, they would never read into it what Mrs. Hale, Mrs. Peters, and Mrs. Wright did.

Wright life of isolation and abuse is a factor that makes Mrs. Peters shift her judgment from supporting the course of law that would stipulate the conviction of the suspect Mrs. Wright. Mrs. Hale who is with Mrs. Peters speaks on how her neighbor Mrs. Wright was living every day sad and isolated by saying “Not having children makes less work—but it makes a quiet house, and Wright out to work all day, and no company when he did come in” (1079). In fact, Mrs. Hale later express her guilt for not visiting the isolated Mrs. Wright “I wish I had come over sometimes when she was here “ (1079). Mrs. Peter is so moved by the stories that Mrs. Hale tells about Minnie Foster before she married, we also see in Russell Glaspell’s “Trifles” “Mrs. Hale subtly suggests that Mrs. Wright is not the sole agent in the death of Mr. Wright “ (1) that she decides to talk closer and in hushed voices to Mrs. Hale so as to protect Minnie Wright from any chauvinistic attitudes that may justify revenge as the reason for murder. This is also stated in Russell Glaspell’s “Trifles” “foreshadows the conspiracy of the three women and their efforts to control the outcome or the fate of all characters”

Biases and inequality towards women have been a problem in society since men foolishly decided to give women the stereotype of being housewives and only good for breeding children. Those who refuse to follow the stereotype are considered promiscuous, or unfaithful towards their significant other. This stereotype was highly expected of women during the early twentieth century, and was also exhibited in John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men towards Curley’s wife. Of Mice and Men took place in the 1930s, and the plot follows two best friends trying to achieve their dreams, which lands them in a ranch that will do them nothing but harm. In this ranch, only the strongest may survive, and those who do not follow the usual stereotype were considered weak, and will most likely die. Steinbeck’s theme of death is always feared, but to some it is a way to leave the misery that is the world reveals the social injustices in society causes gender discrimination towards Curley’s wife. The hostility and bitterness towards Curley’s wife did not just lead to her death, but also saved her from the loneliness and isolation she had to go through on the ranch.

Treatment of Women in Literature and the Real World A woman’s role in life is an important element in literature and in the real world. Two literary works that talk about women’s roles are Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck and Arthur Miller’s play, Death of a Salesman. In both works there are few representations of women and what they are supposed to do. In Of Mice and Men and Death of a Salesman the women are expected to do the housework and comply with what their husband tells them.

As women shift into new roles, men begin to feel a loss of power and downplay the significance of what the woman is doing because it is not how they are used to seeing them. The sheriff, country attorney and Mr. Hale view the women and their ways as insignificant in Trifles. “Well, can you beat the women! Held for murder and worryin’ about her preserves” (243). “Well, women are used to worrying over trifles” (243).

Throughout the story “Of Mice and Men” by John Steinbeck, women are mentioned only a handful of times. There are very few female characters in this story and only one actually appears in the book. The others are mentioned by name alone. One of these characters, specifically Curley’s wife, is a perfect example of a subject that is often ignored by readers. Even if he doesn’t come out and say it, Steinbeck makes the women in this story corrupting influences. Motifs like the constant use of red in the description of those women illustrate the allure and violence surrounding them. Whether they are a slut like Curley’s wife, a squawker like the girl from weed, or someone who kills dreams quietly like Susy, women in “Of Mice And Men” are just no

Throughout history women have been handed a subservient role to her male counterpoint. Females in the late 19th and early 20th century were treated like a second-class citizen, and were thought of as being the weaker sex. It was the women’s job to stay home to cook and raise the children. While these are still prevalent issues, it is also true that things has gotten better for some women in recent years. Works like “The Doll House” by Henrik Ibsen and “Trifles” by Susan Glaspell have helped advance the idea of what roles women should play in society. In each play there are strong, female protagonists who, despite being oppressed by the societal rules against women, learn to rebel and fight for what they believe is right. While there are

In life many people have gender expectations such as women should stay home and clean the house, take care of the kids, cook, etc. For men they have the expectation to work hard to pay the bills and put food on the table. The book Raisin in the Sun and Of Mice and Men, many characters catch this stereotypical energy. In today’s generation people see society expecting a certain gender to do certain things everyday. For an example, in the book Of Mice and Men, Crooks stated,”Candy's face had grown redder and redder, but before she was done speaking, he had control of himself. He was the master of the situation. "I might of knew," he said gently. "Maybe you just better go along an' roll your hoop. We ain't got nothing to say to you at all. We know what we got, and we don't care whether you know it or not." This shows that Crooks thought that he was weak because he wasn’t able to shoot the dog but he was strong enough to deal with Curley’s wife.

In the novel not only did Curley’s wife demonstrates what it truly means to be women but also how it also feels to be one in the 1930’s. When almost every man in the nation sincerely thought of females as extremely unimportant and even pointless in society. One way Steinbeck shows how unfair and unjust civilization became in the 1930’s by slightly exposing all of the male characters and their true color towards Curley’s wife when she interacts with them. But just like Curley wife she and many others also needed to bear the loneliness and isolation from men and everyone else. Unlike the injustice and unfairness, women faced most men actually faced the opposite it and enjoyed many open opportunities and chances life gave them. While women powerlessly

In Susan Glaspell’s one-act play Trifles, the women become more privy of the circumstances surrounding John Wright’s murder than their husbands who are actually conducting the investigation. In the male-centric setting of the American Midwest in the 1920’s, the play addresses gender roles by placing the emphasis on the female characters in the play. While the men are hard at work, it is the women who emerge as the protagonists. In this essay, I wish to explore the gender roles developed by Glaspell in the house of John Wright, particularly their role in the home, finding their identities, and the stereotypes portrayed in literature. The gender role motif is important to explore because it is replicated in many texts including the literature of today.

It’s a hot, sticky summer afternoon in Iowa in 1910. A woman stands in the kitchen cleaning the grease from her husband’s daily work. After finally managing to make her newborn lay down for a nap, her husband busts through the front door, waking the baby. While comforting the baby, she asks her husband what his reason is for making such a ruckus. Ignoring the question, he asks for his cigars. She hands them to him as he walks out the front door. He says that he is going back to town to fetch some things. She asks if she can go with him since she’s been at home all day, but he denies her request by saying that she needs to be at home with the baby and not busy with other unimportant things. This is what women of that time and even some women now would experience in their daily life. Gender inequality has always been occurring, and it is a major obstacle being tackled today. Problems with the education system, workforce, and marriages have existed for many years, and the feminist movement was created to combat these problems. Susan Glaspell’s Trifles is one of the first feminist pieces of literature. Many themes arise in the one-act play, but the most important theme is the idea of gender separation. In the play Trifles, Glaspell uses mystery to display the theme of gender separation and to uncover an implicit conflict.