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The Chrysanthemums Symbolism Analysis

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Symbolic Flowers Tennessee Williams once said “All you have to do is close your eyes and wait for the symbols.” In a variety of colors, the Chrysanthemum flower symbolizes fidelity, optimism, joy and long life .Works of literature usually go into a great amount of detail and sometimes use a symbol as an aid to scratch the surface of whatever the author is trying to shine light on. The variety of symbols used in “The Chrysanthemums” gives the story a greater meaning.
The main character in the story is a woman by the name of Elisa Allen who is 35-years-old, enjoys planting chrysanthemums in her small garden, and is not in the best relationship with her husband, Henry Allen. The couple does not have any children together. The first few symbols …show more content…

In the beginning of the story, Steinbeck describes Elisa as having masculine qualities. “Her face was lean and strong and … her figure looked blocked and heavy in her gardening costume…” (Steinbeck 237-238). The word “strong” describes her many times throughout the story. She is so strong that the stems of the chrysanthemums “seemed too small and easy for her energy” (Steinbeck 238). As the story progresses, her attitude goes through a significant …show more content…

The house is far from town and is a set off from the main road. “The house … is enclosed ‘with red geraniums close-banked around it as high as the windows,’ and the garden where she grows her flowers is surrounded by a wire fence” (“The Chrysanthemums” 62). A random man drives up to the Allen property where Elisa is and asks for directions, but he ends up carrying on a conversation with her. Some critiques believe that ranch where Elisa lives, does not symbolize confinement. “She clearly is not always confined to the ranch, since she gives directions to the man” (“The Chrysanthemums” 62). “I think it will save time if you go back to the Salinas road and pick up the highway from there” (Steinbeck 240). The man tells her how he travels for work as he fixes pots and sharpens blades as there is writing on his wagon for advertisement. Elisa responds with “That sounds like a nice kind of way to live” and that suggests her confinement as she can easily get away at times but chooses not to (Steinbeck 240). Her decision to not end a conversation, with a man she hardly knows, shows the readers a lot about her as a person.
Before the incident with the man, Henry is on his way to go tell Elisa about a big sale he makes. Thinking Elisa will be happy for him, he does not get the reaction he hopes for; she has a negative attitude whenever he approaches her. All she responds with is, “Good…Good for you” (Steinbeck 238). He asks

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