When I was asked by the Public Media Foundation to be a humanities advisor for the production of Susan Glaspell's "A Jury of Her Peers," I was delighted to accept. For one thing, it was too good a story to remain hidden away from the public in obscure collections of short stories. In addition, I had taught the one-act play "Trifles," from which the story comes, many times to my classes with varying degrees of success, and I knew that if I could find a way to bring the story to life in the classroom, it would speak to students today as it spoke to audiences when it was first produced.

I knew that if I could find a way to bring the story to life in the classroom, it would speak to students today as it spoke to audiences when it was first produced.

This point became evident to me when I taught this play to a class of Croatian students who were studying to be English teachers. I had thought that the dramatized life of an isolated Iowa farm wife would have little to say to city dwellers in Eastern Europe. But these students, many of whom were women, were concerned with the loss of status, recognition, and support, women were experiencing as Croatia moved to a market economy. They recognized in their lives the County Coroner's dismissal of the value of women's work and lives.

Without my help, several women and their male friends decided to stage this play. They designed a simple set and costumes, memorized the lines, and wrote a clear introduction to help the audience understand the context. After many afternoons of practice, they produced the play for the rest of the members of the school of education at their university.

Knowing that the play could speak to students today, I have tried to encourage my Iowa students to bring this play to life by reading it in a reader's theater format. But I have found that most of my students are too uncomfortable with their reading ability and too self-conscious to volunteer for this exercise. When they are assigned to play the parts, they often rush through the words without emphasis or understanding, much like they would read a newspaper, and the drama is lost. In addition, they are trying to fit into their schedules as many credits as possible so that they can graduate in four years, so they do not have time to rehearse a part for class the next day. The Scribbling Women dramatization of "A Jury of Her Peers" makes the story come alive in the classroom.

The A Jury of Her Peers tape enables my students to hear and understand the differences between Mrs Hale and Mrs Peters. They begin to see how Mrs Peters' character comes slowly to the position she takes at the end. Students then start to see how an author leads us to accept a fictional situation that we know is wrong. Often, this insight leads to a discussion about what would happen to Mrs. Wright at the trial, as well as what might happen today. We discuss the attitudes toward gender, as well as the practices that would determine her fate. Without hearing the story dramatized on the tape, students do not hear the nuances of character and meaning.

For me, then, the Scribbling Women tapes, and I use others as well, allow students to experience a neglected body of women's literature. Both my male and female students become much more aware of the subtleties of women's issues as well as the value of women's writing. And my small role as a humanities advisor gave me a valuable opportunity to contribute to enriching the lives and learning of those who listen to these stories.


During the 1990–91 academic year Barbara Pitz was a Fulbright senior lecturer in Croatia.

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