Minnie''S Breakdown

Minnie''s Breakdown In "A Jury of Her Peers", it is difficult for the reader not to be thrown into the mindset of Mrs. Wright. Minnie Foster Wright was a sweet woman who died over a 20 year period. This story shows how belittled women were in these days. The two women who Joined their husbands to witness the scene were privvy to every scornful thing the men had to say about Minnie''s upkeep of the place. What the men didn''t realize is that the only evidence they could possibly find to convict Minnie was invisible to them but not their wives.

The women saw the abuse all through the clues eft behind; it was the abuse that killed John Wright. According to a source it is said that "much of the tension in "A Jury of Her Peers" results from what the women understand and what the men are blind to. The kitchen, during the time the story takes place, was the sole domain of the wife. Wives themselves, Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters are able to determine Mrs. Wright''s frame of mind from how she left her kitchen. The men are scornful of the messy kitchen, and ultimately dismissive of what it contains.

The sheriff comments that there''s "nothing ere but kitchen things," and when Mrs. Peters laments that the Jars of preserves have burst from the cold, Mr. Hale says that "women are used to worrying over trifles. '' , Yet the women know that Mrs. Wright would not choose to have such a shabby or ill-kept kitchen. When the attorney notices the filthy dish towels and says, "Not much of a housekeeper, would you say, ladies? " (Gale, Bookrags)" These examples are what support the feminists theme given to this story.

The men care not over "trifles" as said in the story which gives the ladies a perfect view to all the facts f what actually happened. Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters knew that Minnie never came out and socialized, but they did not know the reason. They knew John Wright to be a good man and might have thought it was of her own accord to stay in and be a good housewife. Once they entered Mrs. Wright''s home, they knew almost instantly it was not of her own accord. "She''ll feel awful bad, after all her hard work in the hot weather... (Norton,673)" were Mrs.

Hale''s words after noticing the Jar of fruit burst from the cold. Throughout every age, while the men continue their aimless searching, the women gets closer to the truth; they keep finding more things that finishes the puzzle of the Wrights last few days in their home. This continues to support the feminist theme set upon this story. Without these two women, this mystery would never get solved correctly because the men in the day and age given in a sense they accuse first and ask questions later. "There''s something wrapped up in this piece of silk," faltered Mrs.

Hale. "This isn''t her scissors," said Mrs. Peters, in a shrinking voice. Her hand not steady, Mrs. Hale raised the piece of silk. "Oh, Mrs. Peters! " she cried. "It''s--" Mrs. Peters bent closer" "It''s the bird," she whispered. "But, Mrs. Peters! " cried Mrs. Hale. "Look at it! Its neck-- look at its neck! It''s all--other side to... (Norton, 678). " The discovery of the dead canary brought everything in full bloom. Minnie did kill her husband; she killed him because he killed her bird. Minnie loved to sing, but she stopped because of her husband.

E rything was now clear to the ladies as to what happened, but they don''t eact the way one would think. They feel bad for her. "If I was you I wouldn''t tell her her fruit was gone! Tell her it ain''t. Tell her it''s all right-all of it. Here-- take this in to prove it to her... (Norton, 680)" Why would Mrs. Hale be worried about telling her that all of her fruit was gone after realizing that she did in fact kill her husband? She might have because she empathized with her along with feeling bad that she never kept her company over the years she left her by herself.

This story shows how men can very blind to the specifics when it isn''t something hat interests them, or Just pertains to them in general. The men''s wives are the reason this mystery has been solved, but even still they do not share their information with their husbands. The theme of this story is feminism through and through, as every action and word from the wives complete to puzzle of the mystery given. The detail that they see in the stitching as Minnie practiced, the upkeep of the kitchen. Minnie''s breakdown may have been invisible to the men in the house, but the wives know everything. A hook and a loop there and you have a knot.