The Theme of Isolation in Trifles

It also presents the roles of different genders at the time and how they were perceived. The title is a representation that everything written in the play was a comparison between how men view things and what women consider as vital to them. The essay highlights the different areas where society has defined the roles of women, yet they have overcome the odds by doing the complete opposite. Besides underscoring the role of genders, the essay also highlights the symbols in the play and their representation of isolation and gender roles. At the first scene of the play, there are three men and two women on stage. They have defined different roles for each other. The roles are so far apart that mingling for a fire becomes difficult for Mrs.

Peters. The theme of isolation features widely in the play. Susan Glaspell depicts Minnie Foster isolation that follows her murder, that of her husband and John Wright. Mrs. hale in the play states that: I could’ve come. I stayed away because it wasn’t cheerful – and that’s why I ought to have come. I – I never liked this place. Maybe because it’s down in a hollow and you don’t see the road. Mrs. Peters states, “… killing a man while he slept, slipping a rope around his neck that choked the life out of him” (Glaspell 474). The canary died because its head gets wrung and the same applies to John who dies during that night through the use a rope.

In the course of the investigation the sheriff mutters some words to suggest that Mrs. Wright should be worried about more important things than her preserves. Also, as they look around the house, the county Attorney notes that the kitchen towels are dirty and concludes that Mrs. Wright must have been a careless and dirty woman. All this while, he does not mention Mr. Wright regarding the housekeeping. Her fellow women attempt to stand in for her, but the men oppose, claiming that having a farm should not be an excuse for failing to clean the kitchen. As explained by the title, women are viewed as trifles. The word can be defined as something of little importance. Even as they begin the investigation, the men are focused on the scene of the murder, as the women are left to look around the kitchen and see if they can find anything.

They still treat it as a home and even feel sorry for Mrs. Wright because the jars of her preserves have burst because of the low temperatures. The details on the motive of the murder get uncovered because it is easier for women to relate to their fellow women. The fact that the women are there as friends and treat the scene as a home, yet the men treat it as a professional site for the investigation shows the different roles between men and women roles. The women instantly identify with Mrs. Wright and the life she has been living. Back in the day, she used to sing in the choir and was also a jovial woman. However, according to the discussion, the book is a presentation of the plight of women in the community.