'Trifles' is a one act play focused around the workings of two women who work to solve the murder of a man whom they know abused his wife, the murderer. The main theme of the play is to show a solidarity between women and the uselessness of a justice system without a full spectrum of views.
I mainly enjoy the use of symbolism in the story, especially with that of the canary. Birds are often used as symbols of freedom, womanhood and fragility. A caged bird especially holds a connotation of restriction of what would be a noble creature, but is now forced into a life of solitude and separation, which we can see if the case with the main character, Mrs. Wright. She had her one passion and love in her home, and it was for her bird. Mr. Wright strangles the creature, symbolizing a breaking point for Mrs.Wright, and a plot point in giving her a motive to enact a murder. She only needed a push; the straw that broke the house-wife's back.
We see a lot of misogynistic rhetoric throughout the entire piece, even outright refusal to take interest in the kitchen, which is a 'woman's area'. The 'trifles' of women are not to be of concern, but having such a narrow point of view is what inevitably keeps them from solving the murder case. This is a huge allegory for a push to equal rights for necessity, something that is pretty ahead of its time for 1916.
Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters conceal the dead bird from the authorities. This gives an impression that they sympathize or empathize with Mrs. Wright's situation. Maybe they too long for a taste of freedom away from their cages? They give this chance to Minnie, maybe even living vicariously through the freedom she will now have.
