13 June 2010

The Revolt of Mother: The part of this story that stood out most to me was an early passage where the mother is talking to Nanny Penn, “...so far as any use of it goes, an' how we'd ought to reckon men-folks in with Providence, an' not complain of what they do any more than we do of the weather.” This passage really contains how restricted women were and that their voice was completely silent. It is disturbing to realize that men were consistently critical of woman's house work and chores but women were never allowed to question anything about a man, even when the matter is quite important such as the one in this story.

Trifles: The segment of this play that struck me the most was when the men were criticizing Mrs. Wright for how she kept her house. It is quite disturbing how they are snooping around her house complaining about a little mess when they should be focusing on solving a murder mystery. The part that really got to me was when the County Attorney finds that dirty towels.

Mrs. Hale: Those towels get dirt awful quick. Men's hands aren't always as clean as they might be.

County Attorney: Ah, loyal to your sex, I see. But you and Mrs. Wright were neighbors. I suppose you were friends, too.

This exchange of conversation really bothers me because it is being suggested that the man could take no fault for these dirty towels and the only reason Mrs. Hale is arguing the County Attorney's point is because she is a woman and she is trying to stick up for Mrs. Wright. This entire scene is simply sad and shows the blame that most men put on women without any real justification.

As Children Together: The imagery in this poem is simply wonderful. My favorite stanza in this poem was near the end when the speaker is explaining Victoria's life after her many sexual encounters with different men. “They say you have children, a trailer/in the snow near our town,/and the husband you found as a girl/returned from the Far East broken/cursing holy blood at the table/where nightly a pile of white shavings/is paid from the edge of his knife.” I think ending this poem in this way sort of shows the consequences of allowing oneself to grow up too quickly, as well as using one's body as an object and allowing men to use one's body as an object, void of any true love and feeling. Clearly, Victoria's life has ended up sort of depressing and empty, just as she once was as a younger girl, empty.