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Essay / The values of the patriarchal culture of 20th century society in The Trivia by Susan Glasper
Susan Glasper, one of the major playwrights of the 20th century whose masterpiece "trivia" has always been considered a classic feminist drama. Although the performance of this one-act play lasted only half an hour, it depicted a thought-provoking murder case and analyzed the spiritual world of the female characters from a seemingly bland narrative. The article aims to analyze and interpret "trivial questions" by applying the power of Foucault's discourse, revealing how women lose their right to speak in a patriarchal society, and then how to pay attention to the disappointment of men through the two women of the room. The trivial matter and the silent voice of the heroine subvert the authority of men and regain the right to speak and their autonomy. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”?Get the original essayTrivia, created in the early 20th century, is a rare single-player drama that has been widely influenced in the history of America. drama. “Trivia” reflects the values of the patriarchal culture of society of that time. The storyline describes the process of investigating a loose case. The setting of the story took place in an isolated house on a farm. The heroine, Mrs. White, was accused of murdering her husband while he slept. Prison guards and lawyers came to the scene to find evidence. Mrs. Peterson, the policeman's wife, accompanied her neighbor, Mrs. Hale. After the investigation, prison guards and lawyers found nothing, but the ladies guessed Mrs. White's psychology from the details and also began to introspect their own lives. They decided to hide the evidence and harbor Ms. White. Glasper records the differences between men and women in a magnifying perspective and the state of survival of women in a male-dominated society. The segregation of men and women in the stage space metaphorizes the differences between the two sexes in terms of social and political life, language and way of thinking. It is by using this hierarchical route that the writer demonstrates his thoughts on the relationship between women and women's rights. As a representative of post-structuralism, Foucault has a profound influence on various disciplines, and his theory provides a new theoretical basis and basis for the literary analysis of feminism. Foucault's discussion of discourse and the subject makes feminism aware of the existence of internal complexity, external complexity and the importance of competition for discourse. This thesis aims to analyze and interpret "trivialities" by applying Foucault's theories, revealing how women lose their right to speak in patriarchal society, become "aphasic" and end up suffering the tragic fate of the people. Then, through a speech exposing the limits of the exchange of information between men and the advantages of the emotional exchange between women, the two women in the drama subvert male authority by paying attention to the "insignificant things" that men do not care and to the silent voice of male authority. heroin. And regain the right to speak and their autonomy. “Discourse” is an unusually ambiguous concept in Foucault’s philosophy. Foucault himself never gave a clear definition. From the point of view of extension, the concept of "discourse" has broad and narrow meanings. Generally speaking, “all forms and categories of cultural life” are “discourses”. The narrow “discourse” is close to the “form of language”. Foucault believes that discourse is the result of the interweaving of“will to knowledge” and “will to power”. Foucault believes that the apparently respected “discourse” also hides, on its surface, the fear of a deep dialogue. Control, imprisonment and obstruction of dialogue are the embodiment of this speech phobia. The attitude of this civilized society towards discourse, towards the violent, dangerous, chaotic and militant fear of dialogue, constitutes the starting point of Foucault's research discourse, that is to say that power determines the right to speak. Foucault's discourse on discourse has sparked much controversy in society, but it also offers feminism a way to reconstruct female subjects, allowing women to become the product of a new discourse and a new structure of knowledge . Male speech power, as the name suggests, means that the power of speech is controlled and dominated by men. The hegemony of male discourse is reflected in the overwhelming control and oppression of men against women. At the start of the 20th century, men enjoyed absolute control over society. Their contempt and repression of women were undeniable social phenomena. This phenomenon also favored the development of tragedies in Trivia. In this short play, Glasper uses both language and behavior to demonstrate the state of inequality between men and women, thereby revealing the superiority of men over women. Men who master the right to speak not only construct their grammatical rules and linguistic systems, but also instill and reinforce the cultural values underlying them, so that women are both materialized and tortured in the process of pursuit of themselves. The struggle of losing the right to speak and express oneself is very painful, but there is nowhere to vent. Women's resistance and subversion to patriarchal society often results in tragedies such as madness and death, and eventually become the grave goods of society. This not only causes women's own tragedy, but also inspires other women in society to have fearful thinking, which in turn reinforces the hegemonic position of men in society. The ridicule and neglect of the speech of the male characters in the "anecdotes" and the ending of Mrs. White's tragedy fully reflect society's discrimination and contempt for women, as well as the suppression and contempt of speech feminine.At the beginning of the 20th century, feminine identity was confirmed by the men to whom they belonged. The title of all women in the short play was defined by the male surname. Through Mrs. Hale's memories later, we can trace the changes of Mrs. White-Minnie White before and after the marriage. Before marriage, Minnie was a lively and open-minded woman. After marriage, in order to meet the social and cultural ethics and male superiority of obeying the male social concept, she was forced to shut herself away until she was completely lost. This practice of erasing women's personal thoughts and eliminating differences reflects the widespread neglect and prejudice against women in patriarchal society. Women's loss of consciousness focuses on accentuating the loss of women's “self”. From the beginning of the scenario, the first appearance of the man goes against the principle of “priority to women” advocated at the time. The first act of this stage clarifies the true dominant position between men and women. The indifference of the men seems to have insinuated the existence of a masculine presence over the ladies. The role of the three men at the crime scene was thataccident investigator, responsible for finding the motive for the crime. They undoubtedly played a major role at the crime scene. When a woman appears, she is a vulnerable group and a neglected object. Their words have been neglected. In the eyes of men, women are ignorant and weak. They are only the husbands' "disciples", who were left in the kitchen during the investigation by the "investigators" and who are free to speak after their departure. Not only did they lose the right to speak freely, but they were also accused and scorned. As a suspect, Minnie, after her marriage, to abandon her husband and her social customs, abandoned everything she belonged to. origin and abandoned it. self. Minnie seems to have married a powerful and socially sexual man, but the price to pay for this is the "rights" of the self, to the point of losing the right to speak. She lost the opportunity to communicate and communicate with the outside world, from a lively, energetic and hopeful girl to a housewife who lost her depression and status. Therefore, whether it is Mrs. White, Mrs. Hale, or Mrs. Peterson, the role played in the play is not a me or a depressed person. self. More and more wives in patriarchal society chose to remain silent, abandon their identity and independent personality, and eventually became male accomplices. Third, the “of” of female discursive power after the dissolution of hegemony. Male discursive power is an important manifestation of patriarchy and a force of oppression of women. And if women want to be completely independent, they must break this power. “Trivia” seeks to overturn the ideology of positive centralism, thereby liberating its slavery to women. First, Glasper used the strategy of irony to subvert the myth of the absolute male subject. Judging by the type of short play, “Trivia” is a one-act play. From start to finish, there is only one scene. The ups and downs of the plot occur in the kitchen. Even the important physical evidence of the case is in the kitchen. . Second, the characters on stage are predominantly women. The male characters are only the “push” for the development of the plot on stage, which makes men marginalized and secondary. Furthermore, the more important point is that the final disclosure of the secret and its revelation falls on a woman rather than a professional male "investigator". Male neglect of the female world leads to their blindness to certain truths. Women's concealment of evidence is a punishment for them, and it also reflects their desire to control their own destiny and their disregard for patriarchal social law.The return of female identity is mainly reflected in: First, recognition of self-identity, female characters began to appear as an independent individual subject. For example, Mrs. Peterson wakes up. At first, Mrs. Peterson was only to some extent a subsidiary of her husband. His words and actions were more representative of Peterson's position and point of view. Mrs. Hale guides Mrs. Peterson step by step to discover herself and the truth of the facts. Mrs. Peterson's identity gradually awakens. However, from beginning to end, both of them simply called each other's wife and did not reveal their real names. But when the lawyer and the sheriff mocked the two men again, they counterattacked. Additionally, when two people work together to keep secrets, they also reflect their recognition and affirmation of their identity. The return of Minnie's identity is one. With the death of Mr. White,.