A Jury of Her Peers (Glaspell)
Short Summary
Dickson County, early 20th century. Martha Hale was called away from her kitchen by the sheriff to accompany his wife to the Wright farmhouse, where John Wright had been found dead.
At the farmhouse, the men searched for evidence while Martha and Mrs. Peters remained in the kitchen. The men dismissed the women's domestic observations as trivial while they investigated John Wright's murder by strangulation.
The women discovered crucial evidence in the kitchen: a dead canary with its neck wrung, hidden in a pretty box, and erratic stitching in Minnie's quilt. They realized that John Wright had killed Minnie's beloved bird, leading her to strangle him in revenge.
We live close together, and we live far apart. We all go through the same things--it's all just a different kind of the same thing! If it weren't--why do you and I understand? Why do we know--what we know this minute?
Understanding the despair that drove Minnie to murder, the women silently agreed to hide the evidence, concealing the dead bird in Martha's pocket before the men returned.
Detailed Summary
Summary sections do not match original text structure.
The Sheriff's Wife and Mrs. Hale Visit the Wright Farm
Martha Hale was suddenly called away from her kitchen duties one cold morning to accompany the sheriff and his wife to the Wright farmhouse. She had been in the middle of her bread-making when the sheriff came to fetch her, saying his wife wanted another woman's company.
It was no ordinary thing that called her away--it was probably farther from ordinary than anything that had ever happened in Dickson County. But what her eye took in was that her kitchen was in no shape for leaving
In the buggy, Mrs. Hale observed Mrs. Peters, the sheriff's wife, whom she had met at the county fair the previous year. She noted how unlike a sheriff's wife Mrs. Peters seemed, being small and thin with a timid voice.
Discovery of the Crime and Initial Investigation
At the Wright house, Lewis Hale recounted his discovery of the crime to the county attorney. He had visited the previous day to discuss installing a telephone line with John Wright. Upon arrival, he found Minnie Wright in her rocking chair, acting strangely. When he asked to see John, she told him matter-of-factly that her husband was dead upstairs, strangled with a rope.
The Women's Investigation in the Kitchen
While the men searched upstairs for evidence, Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters remained in the kitchen. The county attorney dismissed the kitchen as containing nothing important, just "kitchen things." However, the women noticed telling details about Minnie Wright's life - her broken stove, dirty towels, and unfinished household tasks.
Nothing here but kitchen things, he said, with a little laugh for the insignificance of kitchen things... The two women had drawn nearer, and now the sheriff's wife spoke. Oh--her fruit, she said, looking to Mrs. Hale
Discovery of the Dead Bird and Silent Understanding
The women discovered crucial evidence that the men overlooked. They found a birdcage with a broken door, and later, wrapped in silk inside a pretty box, they found a dead canary with its neck wrung. The discovery led them to understand the motive behind John Wright's murder - he had killed Minnie's beloved bird, her only companion in her lonely life.
She was going to bury it in that pretty box... If they hadn't held me back I would have--hurt him... I know what stillness is, repeated Mrs. Peters, in just that same way
Both women understood the significance of the dead bird. Mrs. Peters recalled her own rage when a boy had killed her kitten in her youth, while Mrs. Hale reflected on Minnie Foster's transformation from a lively young woman who sang in the choir to a lonely, isolated wife. They recognized how the silence and loneliness of her marriage, punctuated only by the bird's song, had driven her to this desperate act.
If there had been years and years of--nothing, then a bird to sing to you, it would be awful--still--after the bird was still... I know what stillness is
The Women's Silent Verdict
Mrs. Hale felt intense guilt for not visiting Minnie over the years, recognizing how her isolation had contributed to the tragedy. The two women faced a moral dilemma - whether to reveal the evidence they had found or protect Minnie Wright by keeping silent.
That was a crime! That was a crime! Who's going to punish that? ... Oh, I wish I'd come over here once in a while! ... We live close together, and we live far apart
When the men returned, they continued to dismiss the women's domain as trivial, joking about their concern over preserves and quilting. The county attorney patronizingly remarked that Mrs. Peters, being married to the law, would know her duty. However, Mrs. Peters responded ambiguously to this assumption.
Married to the law! chuckled Mrs. Peters' husband... When she spoke, her voice was muffled. Not--just that way, she said... For one final moment--the two women were alone in that kitchen
In their final moments alone, the women made their decision. When Mrs. Peters attempted to hide the box containing the dead bird but found it wouldn't fit in her handbag, Mrs. Hale quickly took it and concealed it in her coat pocket. Through this action, they became a jury of Minnie's peers, understanding the circumstances that led to her crime and choosing to protect her by hiding the evidence that would have provided the prosecution with a motive.
The story concluded with the county attorney asking the women about Minnie's quilting, unaware that they had just concealed crucial evidence. When he asked whether she was going to quilt or knot it, Mrs. Hale responded simply that Minnie was going to knot it, the double meaning of her words serving as a final, grim acknowledgment of their shared understanding of the tragedy that had unfolded in that lonely farmhouse.