The authors Kate Chopin of Desirees Baby and Susan Glaspell of Trifles present a caste system of the 19th century. They both focus upon the theme of the inferiority of women with respect to marriage, gender, and prospective positions in a caste system of society. Actually, these two authors can be thought of as feminists of their times. Surely, many readers thought that these two authors were very liberal in their writing. Many of todays readers would be in agreement of the womens plight of past times. In each of the stories, the women characters are inferior to their husband counterparts.
In Desirees Baby, Desiree knows she must believe and follow her marriage vows of honor, obey, and respect. When Armand listens to gossip and does not inquire further, he believes his wife is not a white woman. He shuns both her and the baby. Desiree asks him, Shall I go, Armand? Do you want me to go (Chopin 359). She finally leaves with the child without any pleading or begging for justice or explanation but out of consent. In addition, the characterization of Armand points to his dominance over his wife. This is seen when Desiree realizes a strange, an awful change in her husbands manner, hich she dared not ask him to explain (358).
During this time, women were forbidden to question their husbands. In Trifles, Mrs. Peters is said to be the sheriffs wife and married to the law (Glaspell 65). She is unimportant and belonging to the sheriff more like property that one owns. This tolerance of being dominated by her male husband is emphasized by Mrs. Peters stating to Mrs. Hale, But Mrs. Hale, the law is the law (61). Her husband makes the law for everyone and for her. She does not question him. Glaspell describes Minnie Foster, later known as Mrs. Wright, as happy when she was young.
She dressed nicely, she sang in a choir, and she was out in society a great deal. Her husband, Mr. Wright, is characterized as being like a hermit, saying folks talked too much anyway when referring to buying a telephone (57). Once Mrs. Wright married Mr. Wright, she obeys him and ends up changing her whole lifestyle. The other husbands wives notice her change saying she used to wear pretty clothes and be lively, when she was Minnie Foster, one of the town girls singing in the choir. But thatoh, that was thirty years ago (60).
Because these women were thought of as the wives, they were told hat to do, when to do it, and how to do it by their husbands. The husbands, because of their gender, see themselves as the authority figures. They do not value any of the womens opinions, thoughts, or even intelligence too highly in these stories because of the womens gender. In Desirees Baby, the baby is determined to be black; one of the parents is black. Armand sort of takes the initiative and declares himself, who is of nobility and master of the plantation by gender not to be the one tainted with the inferior bloodline.
This only leaves Desiree, who does not really know her background. However, it does not matter. Desiree, being female, assumes the guilt and gets no chance to explain, or to seek explanation. This is significant because the one who actually had the black heritage was Armand. In Trifles, the men criticize the womens thoughts and opinions. The men even make fun of the women. When the women are talking about the fruit, the sheriff says, Well, can you beat the women! Held for murder and worryin about her preserves (58).
Mr. Hale also says, Well, women are used to worrying over trifles, about the same situation. Neither man fully comes to understand the significance of the omens opinions nor thinks that the women could add anything to help solve the case at hand. The reader realizes that the women, with their opinions and thoughts, are the ones who actually figure out the how, who, and why of the murder. Because of the womens gender, the men in these patriarchal societies in each story do not fully realize the womens values or intelligence.
When looking closer, one can see that the wives in these marriages are also restricted to being homemakers and mothers. The males agree that there was not much more for their wives to do other than being a homemaker or a mother to their children. In Trifles, the wives talk about their lives and responsibilities. Mrs. Hale finishes the loaf of bread in a manner of returning to familiar things (59). Mrs. Peters says, she (Mrs. Wright) wanted an apron, to make her feel more natural (60).
Mrs. Hale then comments about trying to get her own (Mrs. Wrights) house to turn against her (61). The wives comment on piecing a quilt and worrying about her bottles of fruit (64). All of these comments suggest that all the wives did was housework. Even the County Attorney remarks on how Mrs. Wright was not much of a housekeeper and how she did not have the homemaking instinct (59). Later when Mrs. Peters leaves he picks up the apron, and laughs (65). These remarks intensify the feeling that the husbands thought of their wives as homemakers. In addition, the reader gets the feeling that the wives had no free time.
Mrs. Hale says, theres a great deal of work to be done on a farm and farmers wives have their hands full (59). Mrs. Peters remarks you were awful busy, Mrs. Haleyour house and your children (62). Mrs. Hale mentions Ive not seen much of her of late years (59). One can conclude that the wives do all the work around the house and raise the children with not much spare time left over for them. This conveys to the husbands the feeling that Minnie Foster could not have had time to commit the murder.
Yet, the women, who see all of the tasks half done, feel that Mrs. Wright suddenly had to do something right then in her busy day. In Desirees Baby, one sees that Armand, the husband, is in charge of all the work. Chopin writes that Young Aubignys rule was a strict one, too, and under it his negroes had forgotten to be gay (Chopin 357). Living in a time of plantations and slaves, servants do the work around the house. One of La Blanches little quadroon boys stood fanning the child slowly with a fan of eacock feathers (358). Desiree is restricted to childbearing and raising their child. Even Desirees mother urges her, to come back to your mother who loves you.
Come with your child (359). In this day, the wives did this and nothing more than was expected of them. All of the above stated qualities about marriage lead to one conclusion–the wives of this time were inferior to their husband counterparts. Today, in a marriage, the wife and the husband are closer to equal. Today, more women have well-paying jobs that allow them to share in the support of the family expenses. Today, the thoughts that women are nferior because of their gender are all but gone. Today, neither the woman nor the man exclusively does the work around the house.
Today, men and women are so much more independent and self-sufficient that sometimes they do not marry or if they do, they adjust their marriage vows accordingly. Since so much has changed with the times, the types of marriages portrayed in these stories are almost totally gone. The only exceptions would be the ones in movies, which portray this earlier period. The authors Kate Chopin and Susan Glaspell speak out against the inferiority of women in these marriages. They each lived close to he time of their stories and therefore could get a great deal of input by looking at other marriages and maybe their own.
They both show that the women were essentially belittled and not taken seriously. In the case of Desiree in Desirees Baby, this is because of her gender, marriage, and race. In the case of Mrs. Wright and the other wives in Trifles, this is due to their gender, social positions, and marriage. For the period that these authors lived in, the disparaging of women was commonplace. The authors should be commended for writing such liberating thoughts and ideas that would otherwise never be thought of in that day and time.