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Feminist Literary Criticism

Feminism has manifested itself in very many disciplines from time immemorial

ranging from feminist history to feminist literary criticism. All along up to the present times,

feminism cate for has focused on the role and plight of women, aiming to establish equality

and advocate for equal rights for women. Depending on different factors including race,

culture, and the intended outcomes, different women have proposed alternative feminism all

of which have eventually sought for the advancement of women in their different fields. In

interpreting literary works, feminism is one of the literary theories that has had weighty and

all-embracing impacts on literary criticism. With this assurance, this paper explores one play;

Trifles by Susan Glaspell and one poem; The Waste Land by T.S Eliot to identify and

compare how feminist literary theory is used to interpret these works.

Feminist criticism in the 1970s was mostly fixated on raising awareness on the

patriarchy in which most women felt trapped in. A number of critics sought therefore to

disclose how different literary works established the domination and helplessness of women

in different periods and cultures [CITATION Gar171 \l 2057 ]. A section of the critics in this time

wanted to show that literary female characters could overcome the sexist power constructs

that are all around them and exercise authority in their minds. Gardner also asserts that other

critics were all for the promotion of the works of women whose literary works then, were less

likely than those of men to be regarded as great literature. At the same time, another lot of

critics started to note that it was not a one-sided affair; feeling the weight to adapt to gender
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roles – it was for both men and women. Feminism has in modern times expanded to become

gender criticism[ CITATION Gar171 \l 2057 ].

In both Trifles and The Waste Land, there is a depiction of the relationship between

man and woman and still the portrayal of the space that women hold in society. From the

olden days, men were supposed to be strong both emotionally and physically, to hold their

issues and feelings to themselves while women were supposed to behave in certain ways all

which can be seen in these two works. Trifles is about the death of a man and the subsequent

handling of the wife who is the main suspect. There is a clear boundary in how the men in the

play react to the women above all how they regard them as well as what they have to say

about and pertaining to the suspect. Similarly in The Waste Land, there is the evident brutal

relationship between men and women. The poem is structured into different parts but clearly,

the women must decide to both be silent and accept the oppression or speak up against their

oppressors. All these are very strong aspects of feminism in the contemporary world.

Trifles opens in a messy kitchen of the abandoned Wright’s farmhouse where murder

investigations are being carried out[CITATION Sus87 \l 2057 ]. The relationship between man

and woman or rather between wife and husband is at stake right from the beginning when the

reader learns about the murder of the husband. The women in this play show a sense of unity,

standing together in what seems to be a male-dominated space. This is evident when the two

women hesitate to go in after the men; perhaps unknowingly behaving this way due to the

way men in that society have pushed them to be. The men investigating the case are so

focused on finding evidence that they easily overlook what the women are talking about –

basically what happens when male-dominance outdistances the opposite gender.

Another instance of male-dominance is the unquestionable accounting of details by

Mr. Hale whom the Sheriff acknowledges his word saying that nothing had changed. One
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would ask him/herself if the testimony would be taken the same way if it was coming from a

woman in that instance. Feminist critique would be that the women being as equal neighbors

as their husbands, their encounters, and experience with Minnie would be considered in the

fact-finding mission. The men are looking for facts and not the context which would be better

to first comprehend so as to better understand the motive behind Minnie killing her husband

as it was alleged. The women, in this case, have the context from what they are observing in

the kitchen as well as knowing how Minnie had been carrying herself before. The Women are

torn between their loyalty to Minnie and the legal duty to present whatever they find helpful

in solving the case but again the men’s assumptions skip such important details that would

convict Minnie since they do not as the women understand the situation as might have been

and the emotions that Minnie might have been feeling up to the point of killing her husband

in sleep. Feminism has been a movement for social change and [CITATION LAn91 \l 2057 ], who

is a progressed professor of women’s gender and sexuality studies; uses texts to confirm that

feminist literary criticism to a certain extent has assisted in the progress seen in politics over

the decades. This would be a similar case in Trifles if only the men could at least give

attention to the women in their company. In the least of their achievements, the case would

have been solved a bit faster.

The Women in Trifles are oppressed socially and as such they tend to show loyalty to

each other rather than to their husbands. This is witnessed when they are collecting personal

items to take to Minnie who is being held as the major suspect in her husband’s killing. Mr.

Peter laughs at his wife just at the thought that she says Minnie was worried over the canning

jar of fruit when she is held for murder. This is somewhat insensitive to the interests of

women in that society as it is a depiction of what these men have forced them to concentrate

on even in serious issues. That kind of dismissal is a form of devaluing women as well as

their opinions and interests. All along, the men are overlooking the very evidence that they
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are in search of. The blindness of men in Trifles is contributing to the continued oppression of

the women and in trying to seek justice for themselves; trying to fight for better treatment and

at least fight this oppression, such a case as that of Minnie killing her husband is witnessed.

The Waste Land is no different especially because all the women in the poem possess

no true happiness, at least in the true sense. In the first part, ‘Burial of the Dead’ the

presentation of the Sybil hung in a cage – probably a space of male-dominion, wanting to die

and yet had requested to live for as many years as there are grains of sand is a representation

of a death wish and a woman with no hope, full of frustration as she says ‘I want to die’

[ CITATION Tho54 \l 2057 ] , full of uncertainty and anxiety in life. If she sexually admits to the

god, she might gain youthful life as the sun god promises but she defends her virtue despite

everything she is facing – a triumph of the feminist spirit and possession of a form of power

at least. This insinuation is quite an eye-opener to the feminist theme that The Waste Land is

taking. A second woman, Marie, only feels free while sledding; free from palace collusions

but is later assassinated. Feminist criticism leads one into thinking that the future of the

woman with regard to this part of The Waste Land is not so bright let alone successful and is

characterized by social pressures.

In the second part, there is the retelling of Philomel’s ordeal who was mistreated and

raped by her sister’s husband, King Tereus who when threatened with telling the truth to

anyone who would listen cuts out her tongue. An instant when feminist criticism appears

strongly is the fact that Philomel’s sister took it upon herself to move towards change and

served ‘her son’ to King Tereus and escaped[ CITATION Tho54 \l 2057 ]. This represents a form

of triumph and change for the women but also speaks volumes of the ‘gendered desert’ that

the women find themselves in; almost similar to how the women in Trifles have been pushed

into social oppression. The rape of Philomel is symbolic of the injustices and oppression that

the women in The Waste Land are facing not just from the authoritative figures but from
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society - they are potential victims of oppression. On the other hand, Tereus symbolizes the

power that feminist efforts try to create balance and the possibility of equality. The singing of

the nightingale which Philomel is turned into fills the desert, defying the former oppression

while avowing independence in the face of her previous suppression.

Feminism that advocates for women’s liberation can be termed as liberal feminism

which finds the oppression of women in the territory of ideas besides the sexist conventions

about women and their place in society [ CITATION Bah94 \l 2057 ]. ‘The Fire Sermon’ is in

reference to the fire sermon of the Buddhists which emboldens individuals to embrace and

liberate themselves since it is an embodiment of sexual objectification. Just as the oppression

of women in the case of Tereus and Philomel, the woman in ‘The Fire Sermon’ is ‘bored and

tired’ insinuating that she endures because the happening is recurrent – that women are in

most times placed under the control of men. While feminism focuses on the role of women

and the culture and relationship between men and women [ CITATION Gar171 \l 2057 ], the

woman here depicts a state of acceptance to her role in society of being a sex object and is

condemned to that space of male-dominion where the text suggests that man is only ardent to

his needs and desires. The typist in this section is not comparable to Philomel concerning

their reaction to the oppression they face – one retaliates while the other accepts. Feminist

critique in this case would outline that women are not in any way supposed to be restrained in

the expectations, needs, and desires of the man.

As the poem ends, in ‘What the Thunder Said’ the reader gets the hint of things

coming to head; ‘he who was living is now dead’ and ‘we who were living are now

dying’[ CITATION Tho54 \l 2057 ]. After all that the women face in the hands of and under the

control of men, all is coming to an end. Women in the poem are demonstrating the

unforgiving realities of the land they live in. Their relationship with their counterparts, the

men, puts them under the pressure of conforming to the roles that the men force them into.
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Feminist literary criticism at this point appreciates rebels like Philomel who resist the male

oppression and dominion which continually destroy the society

Conclusion

Susan Glaspell and Thomas Eliot have ventured into different literary works but with

the main aim of depicting the plight of women, gender roles, oppression, justice, and the

relationships that men share with women irrespective of their outcomes. Feminist literary

criticism highlights in relation to these two works that women especially after reviewing all

the female characters in both Trifles and The Waste Land, are always potential victims of

male-dominion and oppression leading them to suffer in torture and pain both physically and

emotionally. The play and the poem are perfect explorations in the feminist critiquing of the

contemporary relationships between man and woman, with the oppression of the women

dimming their identities rendering them victims of the male oppressive powers whether in

families, marriages, offices and different authorities. The resistance to the creation of the

‘spaces of male-dominion,’ the degrading of the values of women, and their ultimate

downfall is all that feminist efforts would advocate in a bid to transform for the better, the

lives of women in any society.

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References
1. Bahati, Monica. "The Limits of Feminism: Decolonizing Women's
Liberation/Oppression Theory." Race, Sex, and Class Vol. 1.No. 2 (1994): Pp 85-100.
2. Eliot, Thomas. Selected Poems. Faber and Faber, 1954.
3. Glaspell, Susan. Plays by Susan Glaspell. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press,
1987.
4. Janet Gardner, Beverly Lawn, Jack Ridl, Peter Schakel. Literature: A Portable
Anthology, 4th Edition. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2017.
5. Lanser, Susan. "Feminist Literary Criticism: How Feminist? How Literary? How
Critical?" NWSA Journal Vol. 3.No.1 (1991): Pp 3-19.