Symbolizing Elisa In The Chrysanthemums By John Steinbeck

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Steinbeck titles his story “The Chrysanthemums” to symbolize Elisa and what it meant to her to be a woman. Elisa looked at her chrysanthemums as if they were her. She found her chrysanthemums to be strong, just as Elisa herself believed she was strong. Elisa found power in her chrysanthemums as she was most proud of them. When confronted by the man who fixed things, Elisa seemed annoyed and tired, but after he asked about her chrysanthemums “the irritation and resistance melted from Elisa’s face” (Steinbeck 5) as she was already ready to boast about the flowers she grew. Elisa’s chrysanthemums gave her confidence. After she got the chance to talk about her flowers, Elisa was able to show others that she was bright and strong, just like her chrysanthemums. The fact that her flowers were able to …show more content…
Not even her husband could bring out the best of Elisa and the reason being that he viewed the chrysanthemums just as he viewed Elisa, nothing but pretty. Elisa believed she was much more than just pretty, so when the tinker asked Elisa about what she truly cared about, she felt as if she was finally being looked at as something other than just a pretty sight and felt as if she was being accepted. Although she felt like a powerful person after she ran into the tinker, the feeling did not last long. When Elisa saw that the tinker threw her flowers away that she gave to him, she realized that she had no power at all. She let herself feel vulnerable with someone who simply did not care. She then started to cry. Elisa cried because she realized no one looked at her the way she did at herself and no one cared about her or her chrysanthemums. Elisa constantly tried to convince the men who surrounded her of who she was because she wanted to be seen as something much more. In the end she realized that she would only ever be just a “pretty woman” and nothing
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Symbolism In The Chrysanthemums By John Steinbeck

“The Chrysanthemums” by John Steinbeck is a short story about Elisa Allen and her passionate love for growing her chrysanthemums. This short story, written in 1938 uses symbolism to describe the inequality of women. John Steinbeck uses Elisas wardrobe to describe the prejudice to women. During the beginning of the story, Elisa is wearing bulky clothing, gloves, and a hat. This symbolizes inequality because the lifeless attire symbolizes that Elisa is muted from the excitement and attention she wants…

Words 515 - Pages 3