They say a person is innocent until proven guilty in the United States, but sometimes the opposite is true, as is the case in the play Trifles, by Susan Glaspell. The men speculate that the murder suspect, Mrs. Wright, is a looney housewife before they even thoroughly investigate the crime scene. Their chauvinistic attitude towards women drives Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters into creating an unspoken bond with Mrs. Wright. They view the evidence from Mrs. Wright's perspective and examine it systematically and rationally, without bias or prejudice to uncover the truth.
Shortly after the characters arrive at the crime scene, Mrs. Wrights' integrity is besieged by the county attorney, the sheriff and even the neighbor, Mr. Hale. The county attorney speculates that Mrs. Wright will "have something more serious than preserves to worry about" (446) prior to any real investigation taking place. This demonstrates that the county attorney is already leaning towards Mrs. Wright being the murderer, without any evidence to support his theory. He goes on to criticize Mrs. Wright's housekeeping abilities and draws support from the sheriff and Mr. Hale. When he finds "Dirty towels" in the kitchen, he proclaims that Mrs. Wright is "Not much of a housekeeper" (446) and it is at this moment that Mrs. Hale mounts her defense for Mrs. Wright. She insists that "There's a great deal of work to be done on a farm" and that "Men's hands aren't always as clean as they might be" (446). The county attorney chauvinistically declares that Mrs. Peters is "loyal to her sex" (446) and indeed he is correct. Mrs. Peters may be "Married to the Law" (452), but ultimately is "loyal to her sex" (446) whom she's able to sympathize with her because she knows the plight of being a woman in the early 20th century. She is able to recognize that the county attorney, the sheriff, and Mr.
