COUNTY ATTORNEY (with the gallantry of a young politician). And yet, for all their worries, what would we do without the ladies? (The women do not unbend. He goes to the sink, takes a dipperful of water from the pail and, pouring it into a basin, washes his hands. Starts to wipe them on the roller-towel, turns it for a cleaner place.) Dirty towels! (Kicks his foot against the pans under the sink.) Not much of a housekeeper, would you say, ladies? The excerpt contributes most to which feminist theme?

This question is missing the answer options. I was able to find them online. They are the following:

A. Women artists face difficult paths when pursuing careers.

B. Women need to feel they are determining their own fate.

C. Women are often expected to conform to roles set by society.

D. Women often suffer great abuses in male-dominated societies.

The excerpt contributes most to the feminist theme:

C. Women are often expected to conform to roles set by society.

Explanation:

The short play "Trifles" was written by American playwright Susan Glaspell, who was born in 1876. The play is full of feminist themes, one of them being developed in the passage we are analyzing here.

First, let's briefly understand the context. The county attorney, along with the sheriff and Mr. Hale are looking for evidence to prove that a certain woman, Minnie Wright, has killed her husband. With them are Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters (the sheriff's wife). As the play unfolds, it is the women who will discover evidence that leads to the motive behind Mr. Wright's murder. However, all the while, the men talk to them or refer to them and other women in general as if they only worry about trifles - as if women's reasoning were inferior.

In the particular passage we are analyzing, the county attorney is judging Mrs. Wright's performance as a housewife. He expects her to conform to a certain role. She must obey her husband, keep the house spotless, cook delicious food, etc. He does not take a moment to wonder why her house is in such disarray. Was something bad happening to her? Did she and her husband have problems? Was she depressed? None of that crosses his mind. He judges her according to his expectations, and that is it.