An Open Mind Leads Understanding

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and sheriff are “convinced that there was nothing important” (446) in the

kitchen, the women surmise otherwise. After the men leave the room, they survey the kitchen

and observe how the sewing is uneven on the recent addition of Mrs. Wright’s quilt as compared

to the rest, possibly indicating she was under distress. Upon inspection of the kitchen cabinet,

Mrs. Peters observes that there is a birdcage with a broken door that “Looks as if someone must

have been rough with it” (449). They soon discover the dead bird with a broken neck. Apparently

someone was too rough with the bird as well. It is obvious to the women that Mrs. Wright was

certainly under distress because her beloved bird had been murdered, conceivably by Mr.

Wright.

Although Mrs. Peters is “Married to the law” (452), she isn’t willing to turn over the bird

as evidence because she can relate to Mrs. Wright’s situation. Mrs. Peters remembers the anger

she felt as a child when a young man “took a hatchet” and killed her kitten and how she desired

to “hurt him” (451) in reprisal. She also remembers the “stillness” (451) of a childless home.

Mrs. Peters can correlate these events from her life to the events in Mrs. Wright’s life and she

feels sympathy for her; enough sympathy to conceal crucial evidence from the law.

Treating a person as they if they are guilty until proven innocent is not only immoral, but

it will certainly draw criticism from most. In the play Trifles, the law is not capable of upholding

justice without bias or prejudice. When the men show bias and prejudice towards the women,

Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters work together in secrecy because they know the men “just laugh”

(452) at their contributions or input regarding the investigation. By working together and

viewing the crime scene without preconceived notions, the women not only solve the crime, but

they take justice into their own hands and protect Mrs. Wright from a dreadful future of

imprisonment, or worse.

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