More Than Mere Trifles - 1081 Words

During the Middle Ages, the English church’s suggestions were spoken by God’s own voice. The Church encouraged pilgrimages to various holy places, or shrines, to search for spiritual enlightenment and penitence from sin. This ideology says that if one were to pray at a shrine, one could be forgiven of one’s sins, thus increasing the chance of going to Heaven after an earthly death. Those suffering from a plethora of aliments and other illnesses might also make a pilgrimage in the hope of being healed of it. For whatever their reason, pilgrims made their way to the various shrines; they were influenced, in part, by furthering their faith through religious relics. Pilgrims sought out relics and saw these pieces of material as much more than†¦show more content†¦Ã¢â‚¬Å"His wallet lay before him on his lap, / Brimful of pardons come from Rome, all hot,† says Chaucer in The Canterbury Tales. â€Å"The Pardoner’s Tale† goes on to say that h e even demonstrates the audacity to sell mock relics to â€Å"poor up-country parsons,† who happen to be clergymen. The Pardoner prays on people’s need for a belief in God, a heaven, atonement, forgiveness--a belief in something, anything. The Pardoner feeds off others’ insecurities and grows stronger in his businesses practice through the mockery of religious pilgrimages. Because of the popularity of pilgrimages, King Henry VIII made an inquiry about the nature of pilgrimages in 1535. Once Henry read the dispositions made by his research team, the king made the decision to close over 300 monasteries across the land. Among the results of this decision was the selling of the land formerly held by the monasteries to smaller farmers. This effect of King Henry VIII’s choice made the decision a popular one among his constituency. Shortly after Henry’s curiosity about the pilgrimages began, he focused particularly on religious shrines throughout England. Until that point, many flocked to religious shrines for the reason of religious fulfillment. Pilgrims who were financially well off more often than not gave expensive jewels and ornaments as recompense to theShow MoreRelatedLiterary Analysis of Susan Glaspells Trifles1788 Words   |  7 PagesAn Analysis of Natures in Susan Glaspells Trifles A trifle is something that has little value or importance, and there are many seeming trifles in Susan Glaspells one-act play Trifles. The irony is that these trifles carry more weight and significance than first seems to be the case. Just as Glaspells play ultimately reveals a sympathetic nature in Mrs. Peters and Mrs. Hale, the evidence that the men investigators fail to observe, because they are blind to the things that have importanceRead MoreThe Real Relationship Between Men And Women1037 Words   |  5 PagesThe Real Relationship Between Men and Women In the play Trifles by Susan Glaspell, the men in the play are completely out of touch with the women. This may be perhaps the single greatest important theme of the play. The gender differences set the stage for the utmost vital event of the story, the murder. The men of the story are mainly oblivious to the steps the women undergo in the story. Understandably the women solve the murder before the men even get close. The men acted just as Mr. Wright inRead MoreAnalysis Of Susan Glaspell s Trifles Essay916 Words   |  4 Pagesthe elements serve a distinct purpose; symbolism, for one, is imperative in a literary work because it aids the reader in the overall comprehension of the particular theme or multiple themes that a story is trying to convey. In Susan Glaspell s, Trifles, she meticulously incorporates significant symbols that help the reader recognize and construe the depth of the significance of the jar of fruit preserves, quilt, bird, and the bird cage. Things are not always as insignificant as they appear to beRead MoreEssay on Trifling Justice1540 Words   |  7 PagesMove a little closer together Susan Glaspell’s play, Trifles, was written in 1916, reflects the author’s concern with stereotypical concepts of gender and sex roles of that time period. As the title of the play implies, the concerns of women are often considered to be nothing more than unimportant issues that have little or no value to the true work of society, which is being performed by men. The men who are in charge of investigating the crime are unable to solve the mystery through their supposedRead MoreWomen s Treatment Of Women837 Words   |  4 PagesElizabethan Great Britain, heading the way of the medieval Renaissance, introduced previously unheard of customs of treating women. In Shakespeare’s â€Å"Othello†, women play integral roles in the outcome of the play yet are treated just as poorly, if not more so, than the racially and socially oppressed Othello, the â€Å"Moor of Venice†. Shakespeare’s antagonist, Iago, takes advantage of the few female characters in his machinations to cause jealousy and rivalry among the men for his personal gain. Throughout hisRead More`` Yellow Wallpaper `` And Susan Glaspell s Trifles1130 Words   |  5 Pagesprovides inspiration; for others, though, it causes suffocation. Those of us who don’t get what we need from our environment fail to thrive. For some, like the main characters in Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s â€Å"Yellow Wallpaper† and Susan Glaspell’s Trifles, culture becomes a trap. Both women are caught in joyless marriages to insensitive, sometime domineering husbands. These unhappy souls both suffer emotional problems leading to severely psychotic breaks from reality. Both women are caught in joylessRead MoreWomen’s Voice in Literature2562 Words   |  11 PagesLiterature In the late 1800s and early 1900s, women’s roles evolved from mere housewives to passionate activists who were fighting for rights to their share of the American dream. The main goal of the women participating in the fight was the right vote. In an effort to rally more to their cause, women used not only organized protests but employed literature to speak out. Written during this time period, â€Å"The Yellow Wallpaper† and â€Å"Trifles† are works that portray women as passive timid beings that shouldRead MoreThe Tragic Downfall of Faustus in Tragical Histor of Doctor Faustus921 Words   |  4 Pageshinder his judgment. Dr. Faustus’ troubles begin when he craves power and knowledge beyond human capacity. Bored with his great knowledge, he wishes to find another subject to study to pacify himself and achieve happiness. FAUSTUS. Then read no more, thou hast attained the end; A greater subject fitteth Faustus’ wit. (scene , 10-11) By making a deal with the devil, Faustus trades his soul for satisfaction, and a greater field of study. He is selfish--wanting knowledge, power, and fun withoutRead MoreTrifles, By Susan Glaspell Essay2136 Words   |  9 Pagesprimarily of a domestic nature. Trifles by Susan Glaspell indicates that a man’s perspective is entirely different from a woman’s. The one-act play, Trifles, is a murder mystery which examines the lives of rural, middle-aged, married, women characters through gender relationships, power between the sexes, and the nature of truth. The play, written in the early 1900s, long before the women’s movement and while men considered women their possessions. In the story of Trifles, it is easy to recognize theRead MoreSusan Glaspell s Trifles : Gender Differences And Stereotyping Explored2016 Words   |  9 PagesSusan Glaspell’s Trifles: Gender Differences and Stereotyping Explored Susan Glaspell’s Trifles is a dramatic play with satirical content that points out gender differences and how stereotyping affects perceptions of duty, justice, and law. Glaspell wrote Trifles in 1916, a time in America where women were consistently expected to be housewives and nothing more. Women’s limitations were clearly a spark of inspiration and reason for Glaspell to write Trifles, criticizing society with feministic intelligence