Trifles By Susan Glaspell | Analysis

Trifles By Susan Glaspell | Analysis The play Trifles by Susan Glaspell is one of the shortest plays that I have read. It is also one of the least dramatic and extremely difficult to interpret plays. To understand the significance in this play the viewer or reader should have a better understanding of the cultural context in which this play was written. To do this it is beneficial to know what events were happening in the authors, Glaspell, life at the time she wrote this, the role of women in everyday life back then, and how the suppression of women males affected their social recognition now and then. The play Trifles was written in 1916 (McMahan, 1099). In the early 1900s, up until 1920, the womens suffrage movement was still working to guarantee all women in the United States equal civilian privileges beside men. Susan Glaspell wrote many of her plays on the social issues of feminism, socialism, Darwinism, and legal reform (Beatty, unpaginated). Along with her husband they, founded the Provincetown Players, a theater group committed to transforming American theaterà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ into an artistic medium in which serious social issues could be treated realistically (Beatty, unpaginated).This is important to understanding the play because it brings up the important theme of the play of male dominance over the women. Trifles shows the audience first hand a case in where male dominance and ignorance of the womens observations actually hinders their abilities to solve the case of the murdered husband, Mr. Wright. To get a further insight into how she was able to portray such a realistic incident, it is important to know that this play was written based on a real incident that she, as a reported, covered. As a reporter for the Des Moines Daily News, she was assigned to cover the murder story of Mr. Hossack. The kitchen at the crime scene of the Hossack farmhouse played a huge role in the depiction of the kitchen in Trifles (Midnight Assassin, unpaginated). She was not an investigator, just like women in the play, but solely an observer, just like the women as well. She viewed the world and the crime scene the same way that women in the play did. Unlike the men, who were looking for large key pieces of evidence, the women noticed small, seemingly unimportant, out of place kitchen items and connected that with the emotions and feelings of the deceased husbands wife, Mrs. Wright. After the women notice a view of these minor clues, Mr. Hale says to one of the other men, , well, women are used to w orrying over trifles (McMahan, 1093). This line is the basis for the entire play. Trifles not only refers to the out of place items but also the women themselves. By them worrying about such miniscule occurrences they are, as the men see, not capable of doing a mans business. This leads into the next aspect of the play which is male dominance and ignorance. When this play was written it was the womans job in society to be around the house to raise the children, mend cloths, cook dinner, clean the houseà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦etc. They were not able to get jobs or live out on their own. In the husbands eyes they did not have significant roles in society, only in the house. Many men at this time did not show the appreciation, love, attention, and affection that most women should always be shown. Their role was to be the head of the house and provide their family with the necessities to live, nothing more. Glaspell does an excellent job of showing this by describing the kitchen setting in the play. The men overlook details about the house and Mrs. Wright that women notice almost immediately. As Jenny Cromie put it, They notice Minnies desolate, isolated existence, her broken furniture, the run-down kitchen where she had to cook, and the ragged cloth-ing she was to we ar because of her husbands mi-serly insensitivity. (Jury, 277) These clues, which could ultimately decide the guilt or innocence of Mrs. Wright, are completely overlooked as dumb or unintelligent, solely because the women found them. Also, at a point in the play Mrs. Hale describes Mr. Wright as, Yes-good; he didnt drink, and kept his word as well as most, I guess, and paid his debts. But he was a hard man, Mrs. Peters. Just to pass the time of day with him. Like a raw wind that gets to the bone (McMahan, 1097). She acknowledges that he was a decent man but, by the more she looks into the life of Mrs. Wright, she notices that he was not a decent husband, as were many of the men at that time. Greg Beatty found an important part of the play in which male dominance is showed at its finest. Glaspell shows their dominance, not by words or actions but, through dramatic devices. The play follows, strictly, the outline for a tragedy. However, Glaspell leaves out the closing of the curtain to show a different or a switch of scene in the play. Instead, this brought about through the absence of the men. Beatty stats, Each time the men leave, the women exchange private information; each time they enter, the men force or prevent crucial decisions. (Beatty, unpaginated) This suppression of information was not fully by the choice of the women. Even if they did speak up and tell them about the so called evidence that they had found, the fact that they were women trying to do a mans job, would hinder the ability for the men to take them serious in their findings. The men would not be able to see how the trifles could be linked to the murder because that is not the way that they think. Beatty also made a connection between the names that the women and the men had in the play. The last names of men were befitting for them because of their position in society. Mr. Hale is hale and hearty, and, Mr. Peters, whose name means rock, is a sheriff, or a foundation of society (Beatty, unpaginated). These titles are relevant to the women because that is the only name they are referred to by throughout entirety the play. They are referred to by society through the legal connection of their husbands and not by the independence of their first names. Even though they are individuals that take care of the house and family, they do not have enough freedom from their husbands to be called anything but their husbands names. Mrs. Peters admits her duty to her husband and the law when she says, But, Mrs. Hale, the law is the law (McMahan, 1095). Here she clearly states that she is loyal to her husband and the laws. Also the County Attorney says, a sheriffs wife is married to the law (M cMahan, 1099). Contradicting what she had say earlier she agrees with him even though she is hiding key pieces of evidence from the law. She has chosen to break her obligation to her husband and law in order to stick up for her fellow woman. Sticking along the arguments of being legally bound, Bailey McDaniel claims that Mrs. Wright would not have had the right to a proper jury in todays terms. It would have more than likely consisted of just men. Bailey says, A certain irony underscoring the legislated inequality toward women is established before the play even begins (McDaniel, unpaginated). The women in the play and the people in the audience at the time knew this little fact. Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters did not share the trifles with the other men because they were rebelling against the social norms. They knew she was guilty but had compassion for her after Mrs. Hale tells her story of when she was a child. She said, When I was a girlmy kittenthere was a boy took a hatchet, and before my eyesand before I could get there. If they hadnt held me back I would havehurt him (McMahan, 1098). Here she states that she would have hurt the boy because he killed her cat. Mr. Wright not only killed his wifes bird, but also her., me taphorically. Beatty compares the similarities of the two by saying, The bird symbolizes Mrs. Wright, a beautiful creature who loved to sing. When her husband killed to, it was as if she had been killed, and she killed him in turn. Mrs. Wright had to put up with all of her husbands troubles but he would not put up with hers. She was lonely and only had him for company. When she got the bird she was finally a little happier. However, Mr. Wright did not like that so he killed her bird. McDaniel says that back then though, women did not have as many, if any, options after they were married. If they got married and were unhappy they were stuck and did not have the option for a divorce like current women do (McDaniel, Unpaginated). For this reason of unhappiness they are willing to show compassion for Mrs. Wright. Even though the 19th amendment gives women the same rights as men and dissuades for the domination of men over women, it is still a large part in our society today. In 2001, the film Legally Blonde came out to theaters. This movie gives a modern twist on the inequality, and the dominance and ignorance of men that was found in the play Trifles. Elle, the main character, has a hard time in her job because of her gender, a woman. She is not given the same opportunities that men of her same career are given. She, however, just like the women in the play, can see the littlest Trifles in a crime scene and solve the case. The men push her off but she is persistent in proving her evidence. The women in the play had all of the right evidence but due to society at their time could not, and would not, release it to the sheriff. Kelly Marsh describes this situation perfectly in her article Dead Husbands and Other Girls Stuff: The Trifles in Legally Blonde when she says that Trifles is about, the destructive potential of the objectification and devaluation of women by men (Marsh, 201). This problem has still not been resolved and is, in many eyes, still a very large problem in todays societies. The only difference is women have more resources and more social support to get help this devaluation occurs to them not only in the house but also in the career fields. To sum this everything up, Trifles is not just a play, but a tool. A tool used to convey, to every person that watches, the suppression and hardships that some women had and still have to go through because of devaluation in a male dominance oriented society. When reading the play it is short, unelaborated, and un-dramatic. But by now knowing the actual murder story that this play was based off of, by knowing a little more about the personality and the early life of Susan Glaspell (the author) and finally understanding the strong male domination in this play, back then, and now, it makes the play that much clearer.

Technology and Language in Education: The Effect of New Technology on T

Technology and Language in Education: The Effect of New Technology on Teaching Languages Annie Moore, a 15-year-old girl from Ireland arrived at Ellis Island in New York City on January 1, 1892. She was the first immigrant to come to that United States immigration station, but she was certainly not the last. According to the U.S. Census Bureau (2000), 28.4 million of the 285.2 million US residents in 2000 were foreign-born. With such a large amount of our population being foreign-born, the need for effective language education is immense. The use of technology is very useful in alleviating the pressure of such a tremendous demand for ESL (English as a second language) and EFL (English as a foreign language) programs (Education World, Inc., 2004). Schools all over the country are adding the latest technology to their classrooms, and students are benefiting tremendously. Programs designed to incorporate reading and writing practices in a foreign language are modernized with technological advances which make it possible to interact with not only people within the classroom but students and teachers at other schools and all over the world. With the touch of a button, students at a school that might not be able to afford a foreign language program can be in contact with a school that has rich foreign language resources. Students can send written assignments over the Internet to be checked and graded; they can take online quizzes and assessments that will be graded within seconds and give instant feedback for the student. Real-time instant conversation makes it possible for a student anywhere to keep up with what their class is covering, regardless of whether the student is out sick, or unable to be in class, or even if th... ...rld.com/foreign_lang/ Macias, R., & Rose, D.J. (1994, August). Wired for Knowledge. Hispanic, 7(7), 17-22. Retrieved September 26, 2004, from Eric [EBSCO] database. University of California Davis Department of Information and Educational Technology. (2004). Online AP Course Preps High School Students for University-Level Learning. Tech News. Retrieved October 3, 2004, from http://technews.ucdavis.edu/news2.cfm?id=762 Upbin, B. (1999, March). Instant Feedback in the Classroom. Forbes, 163(6), 68-71. Retrieved September 26, 2004, from Academic Search Premier database. U.S. Census Bureau. (2000). U.S. Foreign-Born Population. Retrieved October 4, 2004, from http://www.census.gov/population/www/socdemo/foreign/ cps2000.html Warschauer, M. (2002). A Developmental Perspective on Technology in Language Education. TESOL Quarterly, 36(3), 453-475.

Psychology and Child Essay

3.1 – Explain how practitioners promote children’s learning within the relevant early year’s framework. All practitioners need to promote children’s learning within the guidance given by the EYFS framework by offering a balance of child led and adult led based activities. Each practitioner must observe the children and plan activities which meet the individual needs and interests. They must also follow the interests of the child; asking them what they would like to do and how they may do it etc. We must also ensure that we are providing opportunities for children to lead the activity themselves, and supporting them to do this. 4.2 – Explain the importance of engaging with a child to support sustained shared thinking It is important to allow shared thinking of two or more individuals where they are working together on deciding how they are going to do something. They will talk about how they are going to do it, and what could happen. Children will need support so they feel confident they can do something and they will also need encouragement to actually take part. The more opportunities they get to do this the more confident they will feel about doing it on their own. If you use a topic the child is really interested in they are more likely to take part and become more confident. Evaluation It is important that you promote the learning and development of a child at this age as it will allow them to become more confident in themselves and their ideas. It is important for a practitioner to reflect on what they have done as it will allow them to see what went wrong or well and what they can do better next time. This is effective as it allows us to think on what we have done. For example if we have done an activity with a child for the first time afterwards we could reflect and see how it went and what we could do next time to make sure it is better.

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buy custom Homeland Security Management System essay It is of paramount significance that the operations of al Qaeda are understood. This is will make it possible for the authorities to make the necessary plans to counteract their operations. The Homeland Security management System has come up with a cycle consisting of four steps which makes it possible to counteract terrorism by putting up measures to prevent a terror activity and, in case it takes place, what steps are to be undertaken to avoid a similar occurrence. According to the Homeland Security Presidential Directive -8 which was issued in 2003 the homeland security should focus on the National Preparedness Guidelines (NPG). In order to ensure that all the stakeholders are being effective in the fight against terrorism, a new Homeland Security Management System has been put in place. The new management involves four phases (check the appendix diagram 1) which are aimed at continually and mutually reinforcing a cycle of activity (Bush, 2007, par. 8). The four phases are explain ed as below and are meant to counter the loopholes which the terrorists can use by training and preparing all the stakeholders involved. Guidance For the nation to effectively fight terrorism there will be a need for guidance to given from those who better understand how terrorism should be fought.Bush (2007) argues that the first phase encompasses the overarching homeland security guidance. Furthermore he writes that this phase is meant to ensure that all the directives are duly followed in a clarified manner to ensure that there is effectiveness in the fight against terrorism. This will involve at times the training of the stakeholders (Bush, 2007, par. 8). Well guided efforts are likely to bear fruits as they will be more effective. Planning Planning is an essential part of any project if the expected results have to be achieved. Apart from just guiding the efforts aimed at fighting terrorism, planning the fight is significant to ensure that the battle is won. According to Bush (2007), planning is positioned in the second phase. Bush (2007) indicates that this is aimed at making the homeland management system a dynamic system that is quite effective in executing its plans. At this the directives are to be translated into a way that will make the execution of the policies a possible process. All the stakeholders are informed on the planning issues (Bush, 2007, par. 9). This therefore will induce cooperation among the members who are involved in the fight against terrorism. The execution The planned efforts are to be executed in an orderrly manner. This stage is as important as the ones already covered above and as such should be given due attention. Bush (2007) lists execution as the third stage of the whole cycle. This phase involves the execution of the plans which were strategized to thwart strike attempts. This can be in form of an actual occurrence or in the form of an exercise prepared in order to prepare the stakeholder on how to respond in case of a similar event (Bush, 2007, par. 9). Executing the efforts which have planned is quite important as it helps to make the war against terrorism quite effective because it reveals the weak areas which ought to be worked on. Assessment and evaluation After the planned efforts have been executed, it becomes possible to make an evaluation which will make it possible for further recommendations to be made. According to Bush (2007), this forms the forth phase. This stage, as Bush (2007) argues, involves a continuous assessment and evaluation of exercises and operations. This stage is meant to measure the effectiveness of the plans with respect to response given to a testing exercise or an actual occurrence (Bush, 2007, par. 10). This therefore means that the homeland security management system is a dynamic project which keeps on changing with respect to changes and dynamism manifested by terrorism. Buy custom Homeland Security Management System essay

ground level ozone regulations essays

ground level ozone regulations essays What: In 1997 the Environmental Protection Agency(EPA) established new ozone standards. The EPA also placed special restrictions on twenty-two states in the Ohio Valley and Midwest regions to prevent emissions from coal-burning power plants from being carried into the New England States by wind currents. (Tennessee is one of these twenty-two states.) Both of these rulings were recently either struck down or placed on hold by Why: The regulations put into place in 1997 by the EPA were more restrictive than the 1990 standards. The regulations limit the amount of ground level ozone and fine particle pollution permitted. Ground level ozone is produced by nitrogen oxide(NOx) which is created by burning fossil fuels. Since gasoline and diesel are both fossil fuels, then NOx is a major component of automobile emissions. Several members of the trucking and fossil fuel industries, as well as members of the twenty-two state region, have challenged the regulations in Federal Court and have been successful in blocking the implementation of the new rules. In the past two months, two separate Federal Court Of Appeals panels have ruled that the EPAs authority to establish clean air standards is not properly delegated by Congress under the Clean Air Act. Therefore, since the EPA is a part of the Executive branch of government and not the Legislative, they have no authority to produce regulations on their own. The plaintiffs in the case also argued that the amount of pollution a person can tolerate has not been established and until it is the EPA should not make the current regulations more restrictive. How: The main actors in this event are the American Trucking Associations and their fellow plaintiffs, the twenty-two state coalition, the EPA, and the Federal Appeals Court. Why would the American Trucking Associations and other fossil fuel burning industries want to...

Lifespan Development and Personality Paper Essay

Lifespan Development and Personality Paper - Essay Example This essay will be considering several incidents that took place throughout the course of Hitler's childhood and youth, reflecting on the way that they may have been instrumental in shaping the future personality, philosophy, and beliefs of the dictator. Through this observation, thought will be given concerning the different influences that affected his psychological development, with a view to determining how his growth could have been optimized. Finally, two different personality theories will be discussed, with an emphasis placed on the theory that best accounts for Hitler's behavior, with reasons give for this choice. Adolph Hitler, like millions of other children, had a difficult childhood that was marked with diverse tragedies, violence, personal failure, and under achievement. Born 1889, in Braunau Am Inn, which is a small Austrian village just across the boarder from German Bavaria, Adolph lived with his family on a small farm. The family moved on several occasions when Adolph was a young boy, which caused several disruptions in his schooling, and his childhood was dominated by a father, who was a strict disciplinarian. The whippings and beatings were so bad that Alois Jn. left home at fourteen years of age, never to see his father again. Adolph was just seven years old at the time. Hitler's obsession with authority and power were present from a very young age, and were reflected through his love of playing war, role games, a fascination with any kind of authority figures, and his intense dislike of being corrected in any form. He had a terrible reputation at school, due to his refusal to either obey, or study. It is also evident from research material that Hitler, even when still a young child, believed himself to be different. He saw himself as 'one of the lads', a popular ring-leader, who enjoyed hanging around with the tougher boys, whereas others have described him as a violent child, with a harsh temper, and spoilt by his mother. It is evident that he needed to be the 'leader' during any game, portraying at an early age his need to control both events and people. The cold fingers of death first touched Hitler's life when his little brother Edmund died of measles, and was believed to have deeply affected him. He could see his brother's miniscule grave from his bedroom window and, in later years, neighbours spoke of remembering the young Adolph often sitting on the wall of the cemetery, just staring into space (Wikipedia, Online Article, 2007). The sudden, and early, death of Adolph's father in 1903 caused the thirteen-year-old boy to break down and cry. However, it also meant that no one was there to enforce discipline, or to guide the already headstrong young lad, and it was from this time onwards that Hitler began to really fail academically. Hitler had, before his father's death, already experienced difficulties at school, but after his father's departure, his behaviour deteriorated, and he was reputed as being a difficult student, with many teachers feeling that he ought to be expelled. He finally left school, definitively, at sixteen years old, without accomplishing his exams, claiming

Leadership Theory Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Leadership Theory - Essay Example This means that Schultz had a preconceived idea that in the nature of his business, those people with the opportunity to lead others in their organization should have got people skills in order to become effective leaders. In its broader sense, Schultz was combining the basic principles of leadership from the point of view of trait and behavioral theories. The very proof is the thought that this can also be explained using the contingency point of view of leadership particularly the Fiedler model which particularly highlights the match between the leader’s style of interacting with subordinates on certain situation in order to achieve high group performance (Arrmandi, Oppedisano & Sherman 2003). This may also fall on implicit theories of leadership where there is emphasis on mental models that substantially includes the combined idea of traits and behaviors of a person (Schyns 2006). Starbucks’s nature of business requires effective group performance, which can only be obtained if there is a leader who according to Schultz has the potential for people skills. At Starbucks, it is about combination of different talents or skills in order to come up with product or service offerings that would place high value for customers. It requires manager in this case who is a leader that at some point could influence the people to maximize their creativity or potential to do well in performing their respective role in the organization. This must be achieved not because of the power of that manager to hire or fire people, but because of his or her people skills that would influence the subordinates. A strong will and loud voice may be integral parts of a boss, but an effective leader requires people skills (Williams & Denney 2010). Modern organizations applied the concept of team-based principle, where leaders’ leadership is assumed to be assigned (Appelbaum, Audet & Miller 2003). In fact, this is another reality at Starbucks. Leadership is assigned to those with