The current research examines the role of Postcolonial and
Decolonization Theories in the study of Susan Glaspell’s Trifles, which has
always been interpreted through feminism. Application of Postcolonial theories
to this work is controversial; since neither the subject of the play, nor the
setting, nor the characters can be regarded as an instance of postcolonial
literature. This paper proves that despite the differences between Postcolonial
and Feminist theories, it is possible to use those postcolonial theories that
raise similar issues with those of the feminist theories, namely Memmi’s
anonymous collectivity, Césaire’s thingification, Bhabha’s sly civility,
Fanon’s Postcolonial Theory of Violence, and Gates on signifying monkey, in
such a sense that it not only consistent with the feminist readings, but also
reveals to the reader the hidden aspects of the play. In order to remark the
significant role trifles play in the play, Ernest Hemingway’s Iceberg Theory
will be employed.