Read the excerpt from part one of Trifles.MRS. HALE (examining the skirt).What does the word “examining” mean in the stage direction?
Which stage direction from part one of Trifles most adds to the suspenseful tone?
Read the excerpt from part one of Trifles.SHERIFF. Nothing here but kitchen things. (The County Attorney, after again looking around the kitchen, opens the door of a cupboard closet. He gets up on a chair and looks on a shelf. Pulls his hand away, sticky.) COUNTY ATTORNEY. Here’s a nice mess. (The women draw nearer.) MRS. PETERS (to the other woman). Oh, her fruit; it did freeze. (To the Lawyer). She worried about that when it turned so cold. She said the fire’d go out and her jars would break.What do the underlined stage directions suggest about the women, Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters?
Which of the following stage directions from part one of Trifles supports the idea that the two women, Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters, are stronger than they may at first appear?
Read the excerpt from part one of Trifles.HALE. Well, she looked queer.COUNTY ATTORNEY. How do you mean—queer?HALE. Well, as if she didn’t know what she was going to do next. And kind of done up.Which word has a meaning similar to “queer” as it is used in this excerpt?
Read the excerpt from part one of Trifles.COUNTY ATTORNEY. Dirty towels! (Kicks his foot against the pans under the sink.) Not much of a housekeeper, would you say, ladies?What does this excerpt emphasize about the character of the County Attorney?
Read the excerpt from part one of Trifles.COUNTY ATTORNEY. How did she seem to feel about you coming?HALE. Why, I don’t think she minded—one way or the other. She didn’t pay much attention. I said, “How do, Mrs. Wright, it’s cold, ain’t it?” And she said, “Is it?”—and went on kind of pleating at her apron. . . . And then she—laughed. I guess you would call it a laugh.How does this dialogue further develop the idea that Mrs. Wright may have had a motive for killing her husband?
Which of the following excerpts from part one of Trifles suggests that Mrs. Hale believes Mrs. Wright may have had a motive for killing her husband?
Read the excerpt from part one of Trifles. MRS. HALE (abruptly moving toward her). Mrs. Peters?Which best describes the effect of the word “abruptly” in the excerpt?
Read the excerpt from part one of Trifles.COUNTY ATTORNEY (with the gallantry of a young politician).Which best describes the effect of the word “gallantry” in this excerpt?
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