In the description of the opening scene of the play, Glaspell mentions
that the abandoned kitchen of John Wright is gloomy and “left without
having been put in order…. Unwashed pans under the sink, a loaf of bread
outside the breadbox, a dish towel on the table--other signs of incompleted
work” (Trifles; 399). Noe points out that these tasks are “signs of an
incompetent housekeeper to the officers of the court; to the women and to
the audience these props help to establish the presence of a disturbed
Õ
consciousness” (Noe; 39). Actually, as I think the incomplete tasks in
Minnie's kitchen symbolize, also, that she acted very soon after
provocation, I mean after John's strangling of the bird.