'The Chrysanthemums': Beginning: Analysis The first paragraph of the story introduces the setting: the Salinas Valley in December, during "a time of quiet and waiting" (337). Some critics have viewed Elisa as a feminist figure, while others-arguing that Elisa both emasculates her husband and engages in an infidelity with the tinker-have argued that the story is an attack against feminism. Analysis. The man tells her about one of his regular customers who also gardens, and who always has work for him when he comes by. If you haven't read it in high school, or college, you're missing out on an amazing piece of fiction. The man chats and jokes with Elisa who answers his bantering tone but has no work for him to do. Now Elisa is captivated. With a few well-placed words from the tinker, her masculine image has been replaced with a feminine one. The man’s notice falls on the Chrysanthemums that Elisa has grown and asks for some seeds. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Moreover, the difficulty of interpretation is part of Steinbeck’s point. Henry says he wishes she would turn her talents to the orchard. This section contains 2,913 words (approx. Steinback has often been praised for his deliberate and meticulous settings, most of which mirror the story or protagonist in some way. Likewise, she is never less. From this analysis, it is clear that the author plays with several symbols. Such characteristic features of American Realism as the focus on the middle class and upper class characters, the author’s intention to make a positive social or moral influence on his readers, the author’s … She invites the man into the yard, prepares a pot of chrysanthemum cuttings for the woman’s garden, and gives him full instructions for tending them. Literary Analysis on Chrysanthemums. Women were thought to stay at homes and wait on their … The Chrysanthemums. He is satisfied to get fifty cent as price for the same. Chrysanthemum stems are long, strong, and tough which are symbolic of Elisa's masculine qualities. Initial Situation The Beauty Among the Blooms. She has asked him to keep his eyes open in his travels, and to bring her some chrysanthemum seeds if he ever finds some. By using a female protagonist, the author focuses on the thoughts and opinions of a woman regarding the way men treated them. Steinbeck’s portrayal of Elisa seems even more remarkable considering that he wrote the story in 1938, when traditional notions of women and their abilities persisted in America. The fact that Elisa and her husband practice farming and manage to sell thirty steers to the meat company is a clear indication of a prosperous geographic setting. The chrysanthemums are a representation of Elisa in life, and the setting is the enclosure of herself and the flowers; by being able to plant these flowers Elisa is able to escape from her reality. Washing herself in the bathroom, she puts on neat dress, looking admirable. Steinbeck argues that the need for sexual fulfillment is incredibly powerful and that the pursuit of it can cause people to act in irrational ways. She speaks from a kneeling position, growing impassioned. She responds eagerly to this suggestion, but it seems he was only joking. This is a story with only three characters and the main character is Elisa Allen. Learn all about how the characters in The Chrysanthemums such as Elisa Allen and Tinker contribute to … The stage is set for … These feminine items contrast sharply with her bulky gardening clothes and reflect the newly energized and sexualized Elisa. It is December, and the prevailing atmosphere in the valley is chilly and watchful but not yet devoid of hope. Vera Nazarian (2010) wrote that "A woman is human. Her special skill is denied and her wish is objected. Sobered, Elisa finds two pans for him to fix. Looks like a quick puff of colored smoke?” Elisa is delighted with his description. Elisa boasts of her self-confidence. Elisa sets out his clothes and then goes to sit on the porch. The chrysanthemums symbolize her sexuality, and she "[tears] off the battered hat and [shakes] out her dark pretty hair"(243). However, the flower itself is delicate and tender which represents the parts of Elisa that are feminine. John Steinbeck's short story, The Chrysanthemums, and Kate Chopin’s , The Story of an Hour, both exhibit a main theme of female isolationism due to being treated as a possession in marriage, as well as the forbidden desires in life that were seized from both female protagonists. John Steinbeck’s “The Chrysanthemums” is the short story associated with American Realism. He wears a ragged, dirty suit, and his hands are rough. She dresses in new underwear and a dress and does her hair and makeup. Sunshine is often associated with happiness, and the implication is that while people near her are happy, Elisa is not. When he comes back from making a business deal, they make plans to go celebrate in town, after Henry finishes his work on the ranch. As the couple leaves for dinner in their roadster, Elisa notices the chrysanthemum sprouts she had given the tinker lying in the road and asks her husband if they could have wine with dinner. His rejections of the flowers also mimics the way society has rejected women as nothing more than mothers and housekeepers. Elisa’s frustrations result from her inability to conceive and her husband’s failure to admire and respect her as the woman she is. Henry is surprised to her sudden metamorphosis. When many of us think about California, we probably imagine lots of warm, sunny days, but it gets cold in the Golden State, too. The Chrysanthemums is narrated in a restrained, almost removed way that can make interpreting the story difficult. “The Chrysanthemums” is told in the third person, but the narration is presented almost entirely from Elisa’s point of view. The plot of The Chrysanthemums reflects a productive and striving location. Although Elisa is a beautiful and young woman, ‘’Elisa Allen is a 35-year old woman who … She is then transformed briefly into a vivacious young girl before she realizes that her fantasies and the stranger are both cruelly fraudulent. Elisa goes into the house to get dressed for dinner. As a result, we understand more about her longings and character by the end of the story than her husband does. The plot of the story successfully depicts the conventional family life. The name of the character is not mentioned but his profession is a tinker that is a person who mends the broken pots and sharpens the scissors. Plot Analysis. Steinbeck narrates her sudden change as she has been duped by the wagon-man. Elisa is stripped of her femininity throughout the story and is shown disconnected from her feminine side. The Chrysanthemums Literary Analysis 881 Words | 4 Pages. Without her chrysanthemum she feel loneliness and her confident disappear, when she no longer in that garden. The Chrysanthemums by John Steinbeck is a short story that reflects the difficulties of a woman in the society especially where her role have been taken to mean conformity to man’s command. Elisa’s clothing changes as her muted, masculine persona becomes more feminine after the visit from the tinker. The Chrysanthemums Analysis | Shmoop JavaScript seems to be disabled in your browser. When he presses for a small job, she becomes annoyed and tries to send him away. At the end of the story, after Elisa has seen the castoff shoots, she pulls up her coat collar to hide her tears, a gesture that suggests a move backward into the repressed state in which she has lived most, if not all, of her adult life. Here's an in-depth analysis of the most important parts, in an easy-to-understand format. John Steinbeck’s short story ‘The Chrysanthemums,’ it is a story about Elisa Allen, a frustrated wife who devotes herself to looking after her chrysanthemum flowers.
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