Murderer or Victim?
"Mrs. Peters: We think she was going to-- knot it." (Trifles)
This dialgue was really interesting to read. Throughout the whole story, I was hoping one of the characters would find a piece of evidence that would clearly prove Mrs. Wright innocent or guilty. However, as the story developed and I learned more about Mrs. Wright's situation, I began to feel the same as Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters felt. I began to hope that Mrs. Wright was innocent, but I had a feeling that it wasn't so. When Mrs. Peters and Mrs. Hale discovered the dead bird and made a possible connection to Mr. Wright's murder, I could understand the internal conflicts both were experiencing. They knew they had come across possible evidence that could have been the motive for Mrs. Wright to commit the murder, but they also wanted to protect Mrs. Wright because they understood her depressing situation. At the end of the story, the two women decide to conceal the dead bird. I wonder if they choose to help protect Mrs. Wright because they both can relate to her. Mrs. Peters can relate to how lonely it can be without having children around. Mrs. Hale feels guilty for never visiting Mrs. Wright or offering help. Mrs. Hale is the one at the end of the story who manages to hide the box. I saw this as a slight act of Mrs. Hale trying to repay Mrs. Wright for all the help and company she had denied her. The two women are fighting with their views of Mrs Wright; the dead bird forces them to consider her both a murderer and a victim at the same time. Had Mrs. Hale tried to become friends with Mrs. Wright, maybe the murder would never have taken place.Then again, at the end of the story, there is no definate answer or conclusion that Mrs. Wright did commit the murder. The dead bird only creates a strong connection and possibility.
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Jeanine O'Neal on Murderer or Victim?: I wrote about the same quote b
Greta Carroll on Murderer or Victim?: You make a good point that per
You make a good point that perhaps Mrs. Hale was looking for repentance when she hid the dead bird. But I think it was more her identification with and pity for Mrs. Wright that made her do it.
Another interesting point about the quote you chose is the emphasis on the “knot.” Isn’t it highly ironic that the bird’s neck was wrung and that Mr. Wright was hanged? And how does one go about making a noose? Well, one has to knot it. I think that the unfinished quilt, left in pieces, represents how Mrs. Wright’s life was in pieces. Then finally she took action and killed (although the play did not explicitly state it, I believe she did) her husband. Note that the quilt will be finished, however, not by Mrs. Wright. The fact the quilt will be finished, to me, shows that Mrs. Wright’s now has a degree of tranquility again. Even if she does not get acquitted, it doesn’t matter. She no longer is slowly being destroyed piece by piece. She may not be able to finish the quilt (and be kept in jail), but she at least has peace (the completion of the quilt).
I wrote about the same quote but had a different twist on it. You can check it out if you wish: http://blogs.setonhill.edu/JeanineONeal/2008/02/we_find_the_defendant.html
I enjoyed your explanation of the inter conflict the two women had because as I was reading the story I too had conflicting views. I like your title too. Speculation and hiden evidence can tell you that Mrs. Wright was a murderer, but sympathy tells you that Minnie Foster was the victim.