FREE ESSAY ON A JURY OF HER PEERS: A CHARACTER ANALYSIS

A JURY OF HER PEERS: A CHARACTER ANALYSIS

James McMasters
English 112
October 17, 2000
A JURY OF HER PEERS - A CHARACTER ANALYSIS
BY
SUSAN GLASPELL
As in the case of most, if not all, good allegorical stories, the primary impact of the
tale is strongly influenced by the author's detailed characterization of the setting, as
well as the characters' feelings and passions. Certainly such is the case in Susan
Glaspell's story "A Jury of Her Peers". Here we see a richness of characterization and
setting that is elusive at first reading, but becomes clearer as the story evolves. In
the final analysis, it becomes clear just who the jury is and the outcome of their
collective verdict. It is by the use of allegorical and metaphorical rhetoric that the
tension of the story is maintained so very well.
Initially we are introduced to a woman, Mrs. Hale, who first seems cast as a central
character, if not the central focus of the story's plot. By use of this literary
diversion, the reader is intentionally mislead by focusing on the details of the patterns
of her life and her overall guiding thought processes. For example, in Paragraph 1, we
are shown the concept of Mrs. Hale's inherent instinct for "neatness", "her bread all
ready for mixing, half the flour sifted and half unsifted". Although this appears as a
seemingly innocuous detail, it later becomes a key point as the plot develops, in that
this trait seems to be directly opposite the nature of the accused. Mrs. Hale is shown to
be a person of neatness and detail; no job is to be left unfinished, and high importance
is attached to keeping a "proper" household. She is shown to be a strong woman, a woman
of principle, who is concerned, if not outright ashamed, of her failure to be a good
neighbor.
In direct comparison to Mrs. Hale, we meet her fellow conspirator, Mrs. Peters, the wife
of the sheriff. It is interesting to note that while the author makes it clear that Mrs.
Hale is well suited for her role in life, that of a farmer's wife, Mrs. Peters seems to
be ill at ease being the wife of a lawman. She initially seems to lack the very force of
character that is required of someone of authority, yet we understand as the plot is
developed that she is instead a woman of equally strong convictions and character, and a
person who can and will, in the final analysis, rise to the occasion. 
Finally, we are introduced to the character around which the story is centered, the
accursed murderess, Mrs. Wright. She is depicted to be a person of great life and
vitality in her younger years, yet her life as Mrs. Wright is portrayed as one of grim
sameness, maintaining a humorless daily grind, devoid of life as we regard it in a normal
social sense. Although it is clear to the reader that Mrs. Wright is indeed the culprit,
she is portrayed sympathetically because of that very lack of normalcy in her daily
routine. Where she was once a girl of gaiety and laughter, it is clear that over the
years she has been forced into a reclusive shell by a marriage to a man who has been
singularly oppressive. It is equally clear that she finally was brought to her personal
breaking point, dealing with her situation in a manner that was at once final and yet
inconclusive, depending on the outcome of the legal investigation. It is notable that
regardless of the outcome, Mrs. Wright had finally realized a state of peace within
herself, a state which had been denied her for the duration of her relationship with the
deceased.
For purposes of character and plot development, the men in the story are superfluous for
the most part. Their major contribution to the story is their good-natured contempt of
women in general, and a woman's ability for discernment. In this case, this ignorance on
their part is a fatal flaw that is at the same time a familiar one. As humans, we all are
egocentric by nature, and it is only through conscious effort and will do humans become
able to fully see and appreciate those subtle nuances that form the complete human
psyche. We also note that the men's' approach to the investigation is based on their
experience with other men for the most part. The subtlety of the female mind escapes
their attention entirely; in fact, it is a subject of derision. This is in direct
opposition to the "investigation" conducted by the women. Although they themselves are
only vaguely familiar with the accused, they are also very familiar with, and sympathetic
of, the plight of her daily routine. The scene set by the author; the broken stove, the
threadbare clothes, the dirty pots; all contribute to creating a sense of empathy on the
part of the reader for Mrs. Wright.
We know the facts of the case as presented in the story. Mr. Wright, ever the dour one,
with little to no appreciation for the beauty of life, imposed his overbearing will upon
his wife one time too many. By taking from her the only thing in life that she truly
cherished, he in effect destroyed all that was left inside her that was good, pure and
still relatively untainted. By his wanton killing of her bird, he committed the
unpardonable sin; he crossed the line formed by her inner feelings by taking from her the
last vestige of all that she ever held near and dear to her heart. It is equally clear to
the reader that the act of murder was one which was not a matter of impulse so much as it
was a calculated act based on years of mental and marital abuse. Although the actual
killing was in all likelihood not premeditated, the thought pattern leading up to the
actual act had been long in formation.
That Mrs. Wright had been abused to the point of desperation was finally and clearly
understood by the two women who were the "peers" forming Mrs. Wright's "jury". The
telling details center on the unfinished task of putting the sugar away, and in the
untidy sewing of a small piece of the unfinished quilt. We can easily visualize what
occurred: Mr. Wright, after taking from his wife the only thing she truly still cared
for, caused her to become distraught to the point of total distraction and fury. This is
evidenced by the fact that, although the majority of the stitching was very precise, that
one piece was a total mess. It is not an accident that this very piece of stitchery
covered the final resting place of the bird.
It is also very notable that the dead bird rested in a beautiful box that obviously was
one of the last things Mrs. Wright considered of value in her life. The correlation
between the bird and the box is very strong; both represented the loss of all that she
ever held near and dear to her heart. The loss of them virtually simultaneously became
the last straw for Mrs. Wright. We can imagine her state of mind as she sat in shock
after witnessing the destruction of all that she had left in her life to love and hold
dear. The fact that she put the bird in the box, that last remnant of happier times,
increases the pathos experienced by the central characters as well as the reader. 
The visual mirror drawn by the author between the singing of the bird and that of the
young Mrs. Wright strongly suggests the affinity between her and the singing of the bird.
It wasn't the bird so much that kept her sane, as much as what it represented to her of
her lost youth and former life. When the bird was needlessly killed, it was as if in
doing so, Mr. Wright symbolically "murdered" the last vestige of his wife's' innocence
and youth which was the only element still sustaining her in her grim existence. In
taking from her all that she truly loved, it was as if her husband physically destroyed
the central core element of his own wife. This treatment she could no long tolerate. In
her defense, the other women understood all too clearly what had driven her to commit the
deed.
The final irony of the tale is the manner of dispatch; Mr. Wright was murdered in a
manner that was entirely consistent with his wife's sense of justice. The fact that he
also was choked until dead reflects wonderfully the justice required for his wringing of
the bird's neck. Note that although there was a gun in the house it was not used. Only by
taking his life in the manner that he lived was justice fully and completely served.
This is a wonderful tale that stands on its own merit. It is an even greater story when
considered in light of the symbolic and allegorical elements contained therein. The
author's masterful use of seemingly subtle and unrelated elements is woven into a complex
tapestry that illustrates fully the complexity that is the human condition. One can only
hope that the "jury's" final verdict was a binding one.
Bibliography
Original Work.
James Harris A Jury of Her Peers - A Character Analysis, Jackson: 2000