A Character Analysis of Mrs. Peters in Susan Glaspell’s “A Jury of Her Peers”

Susan Glaspell’s “A Jury of Her Peers;” tells the story of three women, Mrs. Peters, Martha Hale, and Minnie Wright. On a dreary evening, Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters get requested to accompany their husbands and the county attorney to a crime scene investigation. Unbeknownst to the men, Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters investigate the crime scene after they ascertain their neighbor, Minnie, is implicated in the murder of her husband. While they investigate, they are consistently belittled by the men who brought them there. As the story unfolds, the narrative shows how gender oppression has negatively impacted women’s lives. As the evidence accumulates against Minnie, Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters have to acknowledge the trauma in their respective lives. Both women change, but the most significant shift in perspective occurs in Mrs. Peters. Mrs. Peters was timid and submissive, but by the end of the story, she finds the strength to defy her husband and tries to seek justice.

In the beginning, Mrs. Peters’ timidity blinds her from the injustice of the situation. Deep down, she knows the odds are against Minnie, but her loyalty to her husband, the sheriff, hindered her ability to see the situation as more than black and white. As a result, unlike Mrs. Hale, Mrs. Peters does not attempt to defend Minnie. Contrarily there are times when she defaults to the law. Mrs. Peters had this to say after Mrs. Hale tried to defend Minnie’s actions, “The law has got to punish crime, Mrs. Hale” (Glaspell 212). Mrs. Peters delivers that line after she and Mrs. Hale come to three revelations. The first: Minnie’s husband, Mr. Wright, was neglectful; the second: Minnie was exceedingly lonely and isolated; the third: Minnie’s husband most likely killed her only source of happiness, her pet bird. These revelations are significant because they trigger the resurfacing of Mrs. Peters’ trauma. Mrs. Peters recalled a story in which a young boy killed her childhood dog for undisclosed reasons. When she finished her story, she admitted this, “If they hadn’t held me back I would have […] hurt him” (Glaspell 212). Mrs. Peters implies to Mrs. Hale that she understands why Minnie would want to kill Mr. wright. Despite recounting her trauma and relating it to Minnie’s unjust treatment, she tries to uphold her husband’s beliefs that the law should punish crime.

Mrs. Peters’ submissiveness has diminished her self-identity. She is the only character who does not have a first name. She always gets referred to by her husband’s surname. Her identity is bound to her husband. Glaspell intended to present Mrs. Peters as a representation of many women at the time. Mrs. Peters is described as small and thin; she is unassertive, unlike the sheriff’s ex-wife Mrs. Gorman who was loud and had a voice that: “seemed to be backing up the law with every word” (Glaspell 202). Mrs. Gorman is the antithesis to Mrs. Peters. According to 20th-century gender roles, Mrs. Gorman is unladylike (loud and assertive). Whereas Mrs. Peters is the ideal woman, a woman who sees but does not speak. That is why she does not defend Minnie when the men make disparaging comments about her skills as a homemaker. That is why she excuses her husband’s and the other men’s behavior. Mrs. Peters invited Mrs. Hale; she did not want to be alone in a stranger’s house because she would be otherwise invisible. It is not a stretch to assume Mrs. Peters knew the men would ignore any defense for Minnie. When Mr. Henderson, the county attorney, ridicules Minnie for having dirty roller towels, Mrs. Hale defends her saying: “Those towels get dirty awful quick. Men’s hands aren’t always as clean as they might be,” but in return, Mr. Henderson dismisses her observation “Ah, Loyal to your sex, I see” (Glaspell 206). It is common for men to condescend to women. Mrs. Peters has not been allowed the privilege to make mistakes, express discomfort, or dictate her life path. Because Mrs. Peters has accepted her husband as her superior, she submits to him. Objectively there is no reason for Mrs. Peters to accompany her husband to the crime scene investigation. She is not an employee of the police force; she is not a detective, nor is a witness or a suspect. Mrs. Peters did not know Minnie. Yes, she was collecting clothes for Minnie, but a police officer could have completed the same task. Mrs. Peters tells Mrs. Hale she would be alone without her, saying that “It would be lonesome for me – sitting here alone” (Glaspell 210). The author makes it clear that men do not value her opinion. Mrs. Peters is only there at the request of her husband. Mrs. Peters attends because she is "married to the law."

Unfortunately, Mrs. Peter’s timidity and submissiveness prevent her from acknowledging her trauma until she realizes she is not alone. Throughout the story, Mrs. Peters conceals her genuine emotions. For example, Mrs. Peters refuses simple comforts. It is cold inside the Wright’s house, but when Mr. Henderson asks her and Mrs. Hale to warm up by the stove, she responds by doing and saying this: “Mrs. Peters took a step forward, then stopped. “I’m not – cold” (Glaspell 203). Mrs. Peters never speaks to the men unless spoken to, and when she speaks to Mrs. Hale, she still guards her emotions. Mrs. Hale’s observes this about Mrs. Peters’ eyes “She had that shrinking manner, yet her eyes looked as if they could see a long way into things” (Glaspell 207). Mrs. Peters is observant. She recounts information about Minnie’s case to Mrs. Hale; she tells her that the men only needed to find a motive to convict Minnie. Mrs. Peters pointed out the quilt, the disruption in the sewing, and the broken hinge on the birdcage. Because Mrs. Peters is observant, it be infered that she had an inkling that Minnie was guilty. Only once the evidence against Minnie accumulates does Mrs. Peters reveal her deeper emotions. But the event that triggered Mrs. Peters was finding Minnie’s mutilated pet bird. Mrs. Peters reveals some personal information about herself. She tells Mrs. Hale a disturbing childhood story about watching her dog get killed. Then Mrs. Hale says it must have been “awful – still – after the bird was still,” and Mrs. Peters responds by revealing that her first child died: “I know what stillness is,” she said in a queer monotonous voice. “When we homesteaded in Dakota, and my first baby died – after he was two years old – and me with no other then – “(Glaspell 212). That is the turning point. Mrs. Peters suddenly relates to Minnie. She feels Minnie’s loneliness like it is her own; she can associate the death of her son and beloved dog with the bird. Mrs. Peters knows what it is like to have happiness ripped from her hands. She knows what it is like to feel the crushing weight of loneliness. Mrs. Peters has an intimate understanding of what it feels like to be alone. After that revelation, the men return, and Mr. Henderson confirms that juries mistrust women and only need the motive to convict Minnie. When Mr. Henderson declares he wants to stay overnight at the Wright house to search the crime scene for evidence, Mrs. Peters panics. As soon as the men leave, she does the unthinkable. Mrs. Peters, the woman married to the law, tries to hide the dead bird, a crucial piece of evidence. When Mrs. Hale lies about the bird, Mrs. Peters stays silent. That is the only defiant action Mrs. Peters takes against her husband. Mrs. Peters is desperate to conceal the truth because she sees herself in Minnie and knows that Minnie does not have a chance at a fair trial without her and Mrs. Hale’s interference. She knows she will never receive retribution for the injustices done to her, so she acts quickly to claim justice for herself and Minnie.

Mrs. Peters tries to hide her trauma and justify the men’s despicable behavior. Which resulted in her co-signing to the unfair treatment of Minnie, Mrs. Hale, and herself. Mrs. Peters’ timidness causes her to ignore the unjust situation. Her submission to her husband resulted in a loss of her self-identity. Once Mrs. Peters acknowledges the truth, she has a change of heart. Because Mrs. Peters connected with Minnie’s story, she could unlock a deeply suppressed part of herself. Mrs. Peters was able to acknowledge her dark emotions and trauma. Mrs. Peters seeks repayment for the injustice she and Minnie have faced by hiding evidence. Mrs. Peter would not have dared renounce her shrinking persona at the beginning of the story. Even though her trauma remains, she still attempted to defy her husband to seek justice.