How we cite our quotes: (Line)
Quote #4
COUNTY ATTORNEY: (with the gallantry of a young politician) And yet, for all their worries, what would we do without the ladies? (33)
Here's the County Attorney's awkward attempt at being the gallant gentleman. Right after he and the other men mock the ladies for only ever worrying about trifles, he tries to smooth things over by saying that men do depend on women. Do the ladies buy this as gentlemanliness, or do they see it as another kind of condescension?
Quote #5
COUNTY ATTORNEY: [...] Dirty towels! (kicks his foot against the pans under the sink) Not much of a housekeeper, would you say, ladies? (33)
The County Attorney immediately follows up his attempt to be gentlemanly by being outraged an that Mrs. Wright has allowed there to be dirty towels in the kitchen. He kicks some of Mrs. Wright's pots and pans in disgust. This makes it pretty clear that his earlier comment that men need women could be translated to men need women to cook and clean. To the Attorney, if a woman fails in these oh-so-important duties, then she's failed as a woman. How well do you think the Attorney represents the male opinion of women in his time?
Quote #6
SHERIFF: I suppose anything Mrs. Peters does'll be all right. She was to take in some clothes for her, you know, and a few little things. We left in such a hurry yesterday. (48)
This line is special. It's one of the only places where a man says something nice about a woman. Here, the Sheriff expresses confidence that his wife, Mrs. Peters, isn't going to do anything sketchy like oh, say, hide the evidence that could convict Mrs. Wright. What's your opinion? Is the Sheriff's faith in his wife sweet, or is just another symptom of male dominance?