A Jury Of Her Peers Essay Research

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A Jury Of Her Peers Essay, Research Paper ?A Jury of Her Peers? In her short story, ?A Jury of Her Peers,? author Susan Glaspell writes about the investigation of a murder that occurred at a farmhouse in the country. The story takes place in the early 1900?s before women could sit on juries. Therefore, whenever a woman was on trial, a ?jury of her peers? really was not judging her. As the story begins, Martha Hale and her husband are being taken by Sheriff Peters with his wife, and the county attorney, to the isolated home of the Wrights. Mr. Hale tells the Sheriff and the county attorney that on the previous morning he found Mr. Wright strangled to death. He also tells them that Mrs. Wright claimed that she did not know who had killed him. As a result, Mrs. Wright was

arrested and was waiting to be charged. As they entered the house they came upon the kitchen, which would become the central location of the story. As the men searched around for any clues, they continuously made jokes about the things that the women were concerned about. In addition, they put the women down at every opportunity. What they didn?t realize was that the kitchen held many clues as to the life of abuse and violence that Mrs. Wright had been forced to endure. However, the signs that the men had ignored were clearly seen and understood by the women. Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters were to gather clothing and to see if they could find any clues while the men turned to their ?more serious? work of trying to find a motive. Although the men were making jokes as to whether the

women would know a clue if they saw one. What they didn?t realize was that the women would not only find ?a? clue, but they would find ?the clues? that would be the make or break of the case. In a basket of patches that appeared to be for a quilt, the women found a strangled canary. Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters piece together the difficult life of the third woman, Mrs. Wright, and decide to conceal the evidence that could incriminate her. Thus, ?A Jury of Her Peers? was indeed judging Mrs. Wright. It was very obvious that the men were interpreting a number of the clues completed different than the women were seeing them. For instance, when the men found incomplete tasks all around the kitchen they made jokes about it and called them ?signs of an incompetent housekeeper.? However, to

the women these were clear signs of an ?unstable conscience.? The ?incomplete tasks? in Mrs. Wright?s kitchen told the women that she acted very soon after Mr. Wright?s strangling of the bird. The most important clue that the women found was the bird. The bird, as far they could see it, acted as a substitute for the child that Mrs. Wright never had. In addition, it helped to replace the silence of her cold, demanding husband. The bird also helped them to see that when Mr. Wright killed the canary, he seemed to also kill her spirit. The different meanings of the word ?knot? seems to fit the storyline quite well, however, it also appears to leave one with an image of Mr. Wright with a rope around his neck. Although, to the two women, it represents that they will ?knot tell? anyone

about their secret. It was obvious to both Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters just what had happened. However, without even discussing it they knew that if they let the men find the bird that they would have the motive they were so anxiously searching for around the house. They both understood what Mrs. Wright had been going through and obviously felt that she had already served a sentence equal to the crime. Thus, the reason for the title, ?A Jury of Her Peers,? was being seen in the way Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters decided to try and cover up the evidence that would most likely have led to a guilty verdict for Mrs. Wright. Thus, Mrs. Hale put the dead bird in her pocket where it would never be found, and hoping that Mrs. Wright would be found ?not guilty,? because of a lack of a motive. ?A