Saturday 13 August 2016

Compare the motivations of murder between Mrs. Wright from "Trifles" and Mr. Fowler from "Killings." Are there any connections that can be made?

Yes, both Mrs. Wright and Mr. Fowler commit murder in order to rectify injustice. Apart from that, there are at least two other connections that can be made between the two:

1) Concerned parties connected to both characters aid them in hiding the evidence of their guilt.


In Trifles, Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peter discover a small canary wrapped in a piece of silk, as they look through Mrs. Wright's belongings in search for things she might need in prison. What is interesting about the canary is that its neck has been wrung. The women are horrified by the implications of their discovery but eventually conspire to keep their silence. Both women instinctively feel that they must protect Mrs. Wright, as all indications point to a very unhappy existence with an oppressive husband.


In Killings, Matt Fowler murders Richard Strout to avenge the death of his son, Frank. To pull off the murder, Matt conspires with his friend, Willis, to kill Richard. They intercept Richard after he leaves the bar; at gunpoint, Matt makes Richard drive to his duplex to pick up some clothes for a supposed trip away. However, this is just a ruse to lull Richard into complacence. After Richard packs his bag, Matt instructs him to drive into the woods where someone will supposedly show up to take him to the airport.


When Richard gets out of the car, he tries to run but is gunned down by Matt. When Matt returns home, his wife asks him if he killed Richard. Matt admits to the murder, and both conspire to keep silent about the crime. Even though they understand that their children will be grieved and confused by Richard's sudden disappearance, both decide that silence is the only way to protect Matt and to lay to rest the evil that has plagued their lives.



2)In the aftermath of the murders, both characters suffer deep emotional trauma and anguish.


In Trifles, Mr. Hale tells the County Attorney that Mrs. Wright acted strangely after the death of her husband. Accordingly, Mrs. Wright was rocking back and forth and mechanically pleating her apron when Mr. Hale found her. When asked about her husband, Mrs. Wright had responded with what sounded like a laugh.


Mr. Hale admitted that he found it disturbing when Mrs. Wright confessed no knowledge of how her husband came to be strangled with a rope. In highlighting Mrs. Wright's reaction to her husband's death, the author skilfully illustrates the extent of her trauma and emotional anguish.


In Killings, Matt Flower also displays similar anguish for having avenged the death of his beloved son. Although he kills Richard, his vengeance is a pyrrhic victory; he must live with his awful secret for the rest of his life even though his son's killer is now dead. So, although both murders are acts of catharsis, neither Mrs. Wright nor Matt Fowler can receive true closure or redemption for their actions.

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