Susan Glaspell is by far Davenport’s best-known writer. Her one-act play "Trifles," about a woman accused of her husband’s murder, is the most widely anthologized American play.
In 1901, Glaspell was a young reporter for the Des Moines Daily News when she covered the real-life Hossack murder trial, which would inspire "Trifles" and later her short story “A Jury of Her Peers.”
Though best known for these two works, Glaspell also wrote over 50 short stories, nine novels, and 13 other plays. In 1931, her play "Alison’s House" won her a Pulitzer Prize.
Her play "Inheritors" takes place on a Davenport hillside (now Fejevary Park) in 1879 and 1920. Who is the rightful heir to this land?, the play asks. American Indians? White settlers? Immigrants?
The play’s protagonist, a 21-year old college student, wrestles with the question of what makes an American and whether to risk it all by standing up to the era’s racism. As she declares at the end of the play, “Once in a while you have to say what you think — or hate yourself.”
Augustana's fall Symposium Day 2024 invited big ideas from any and all disciplines, welcoming presentations from students, faculty and staff, and distinguished guests — including keynote speaker Dr. Roosevelt Montás from Columbia University and Dr. Chris Hedlin '11 from the University of Notre Dame.
To prepare future teachers, the Golden Apple Foundation provides training and teaching experience during summer institutes; mentoring; academic and social support; and job placement assistance. Augustana is one of the program’s 50+ Illinois college and university partners.
Carly Davis's poem "Seattle Song" won the 24th annual Vázquez-Valarezo Poetry Award at Augustana.
