A Jury Of Her Peers Analysis
“The Story of an Hour” and “A Jury of her Peers” are short stories based on married life for women in the 19th century. During this time period women had no rights and were expected to get married, raise children, and do household chores without doing anything for themselves. Works of literature written during this time by American women provide insight to the predicaments of married middle-class white women in the 19th century. The women discussed in these stories while alike, are very different. In “The Story of an Hour” Mrs. Mallard’s husband loved her and treated her right. Yet, she felt no happiness or freedom. Minnie Foster in “A Jury of her Peers” felt like she was silenced by her controlling and demanding husband. Authors such as Kate
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and Mrs. Wright. These people are at the Wright house to investigate the murder of John Wright, who was found strangled in his bed. The prime suspect is his wife, Minnie Foster Wright. The men have come to conduct a meeting and find evidence, and the women to gather some of Mrs. Wright’s belongings. While inside the house the two women, Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters begin to notice some details about Mrs. Wright’s life that the men fail to notice. The notice her isolated existence, messy kitchen, and broken furniture. As the women continue to look around the house they find evidence that leads them to believe that Mrs. Wright did murder her husband. They discover crooked and ragged stitching on a quilt block. They also find Mrs. Wright’s pet canary strangled and placed in a box inside her sewing tin. After finding these clues, Mrs. Hale talks about how Mrs. Wright was once a lively, sociable person. But when she married her demanding and cold hearted husband, she became very quiet and lonely. While they are talking the women notice the damaged bird cage on the floor. Mrs. Hale says, “She - come to think of it, she was kind of like a bird herself. Real sweet and pretty, but kind of timid and - fluttery” (Glaspell 549). They suspect that John Wright might have strangled the bird, the way he strangled his wife's happiness and joy with his controlling manner. Although Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters tagged along just to grab personal belongings of Mrs. Wright, it soon becomes clear that they are Mrs. Wright’s legitimate “counsel, jury, and judge” (Bendel-Simso).The women come to the conclusion that Mrs. Wright did indeed kill her husband. Yet they decide to keep the evidence from their husbands to protect Mrs.
and Mrs. Wright. These people are at the Wright house to investigate the murder of John Wright, who was found strangled in his bed. The prime suspect is his wife, Minnie Foster Wright. The men have come to conduct a meeting and find evidence, and the women to gather some of Mrs. Wright’s belongings. While inside the house the two women, Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters begin to notice some details about Mrs. Wright’s life that the men fail to notice. The notice her isolated existence, messy kitchen, and broken furniture. As the women continue to look around the house they find evidence that leads them to believe that Mrs. Wright did murder her husband. They discover crooked and ragged stitching on a quilt block. They also find Mrs. Wright’s pet canary strangled and placed in a box inside her sewing tin. After finding these clues, Mrs. Hale talks about how Mrs. Wright was once a lively, sociable person. But when she married her demanding and cold hearted husband, she became very quiet and lonely. While they are talking the women notice the damaged bird cage on the floor. Mrs. Hale says, “She - come to think of it, she was kind of like a bird herself. Real sweet and pretty, but kind of timid and - fluttery” (Glaspell 549). They suspect that John Wright might have strangled the bird, the way he strangled his wife's happiness and joy with his controlling manner. Although Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters tagged along just to grab personal belongings of Mrs. Wright, it soon becomes clear that they are Mrs. Wright’s legitimate “counsel, jury, and judge” (Bendel-Simso).The women come to the conclusion that Mrs. Wright did indeed kill her husband. Yet they decide to keep the evidence from their husbands to protect Mrs.