Chrysanthemum

the early 2000’s. The Chrysanthemums by Steinbeck and In Another Country by Hemingway are both examples of this theme. Both stories are alike but different in some ways. The Chrysanthemums is about a woman named Elisa is gardening before a date with her husband when a tinker arrives at her home. She is suspicious of him until he pretends to have interest in her chrysanthemums. After dropping her guard, she lets him repair some pots and pays him, giving him some chrysanthemums to take with him.…

stories, ones with blissful endings, and some with wretched endings. Not all stories can end with happy endings. Throughout history people have been searching for the love of loves. In “The Lady with the Dog” there is a glimpse of that love, and in “Chrysanthemums”, we see that love torn apart. Looking at “The Lady with the Dog” people realize throughout the short story Anna, although seeming innocent, antagonizes the relationship with Dmitri (Gordon). Steinbeck is known for being a dreamer and…

There are several underlying themes throughout The Chrysanthemums, but the ultimate theme is gender inequality and the oppression of women in society. This short story by John Steinbeck is about a thirty-five-year-old woman named Elisa who has an intense love for gardening. Although she is a great and extremely capable gardener, she is forced by her husband to apply her skills only on the tasks that are dictated to her role as a woman in society. As a result of this, she is forbidden from…

Difference in Storytelling In John Steinbeck’s, The Chrysanthemums and Henrik Ibsen’s, A Doll’s House, they share a common theme about women being repressed by society. Though they both share this common theme, each writer chooses to reveal the theme throughout the story in different, unique ways. Steinbeck chooses to use symbolism and setting to portray the theme, whereas Ibsen uses dialog as the main method to portray the theme. In the Chrysanthemums, Steinbeck chooses to write the short…

The children’s book Chrysanthemum written by Kevin Henkes is a classic piece of literature with an essential meaning within. Using the simple moral of the Golden Rule, Henkes shows this through the adventures of a mouse in a very social oriented time in children’s lives, pre-school. By using realistic fiction to depict a normal child’s experience through school, Henkes shows the ups and downs of having differences through the 13 letter name of the protagonist, Chrysanthemum. Even though the…

“The Chrysanthemums” by John Steinbeck is a short story about a couple in their mid-thirties, and the work that they are both expected to do. It disputes the daily duties of women during the great depression. During this time, women were always expected to do less and mostly just cook, clean, and look pretty. In “The Chrysanthemums” the oppression of women is demonstrated through symbolism to show that women should be treated equally to men, and they have every right to be who they truly are on…

Elisa from “The Chrysanthemum” and the narrator from “The Yellow Wallpaper” share similar symbols and relationships with their husbands. These women live in a society where it is culturally accepted to be dominated by their husbands and bend to not only the husband’s needs, but also the needs of the children. Elias may not have children, but the narrator of “The Yellow Wallpaper” has one baby. She does not have to deal with the child because the husband deemed her unfit due to the mental state…

In the story The Chrysanthemums by John Steinbeck, is about a housewife, Elisa who wants to be seen as more than a housewife. She has a unique talent of gardening, especially growing Chrysanthemums. However, her husband's, Henry does not see her hobby in a bright light as much as she’d like. She does not feel appreciated by her husband yet she can’t find the courage to tell him. The story is presented to readers through a 3rd person limited point of view. This point of view is necessary to the…

Jamie Antonino Archer 11 Honors Literature 13 March 2015 Analysis of The Chrysanthemums John Steinbeck’s short story The Chrysanthemums, about a woman who spends her time gardening in her husband’s ranch, conveys the idea that women do not realize their own worth and often settle for less than they should. Steinbeck develops this idea though the protagonist of the story, Henry Allen’s wife, Elisa. Elisa’s inverse transformation and internal conflict in her realization of her lack of fulfillment…

relating to these characters. The feeling of hopelessness or embarrassment resonates with all, including the characters that were introduced in the past few weeks. In these stories, one thing is clear: misery haunts us. In the short story “Chrysanthemums,” Elisa displays herself as a doting housewife; however, in her mind, she burdens an emotional lack of fulfillment. Dissatisfied and filled with wanderlust, Elisa is intrigued when the tinker arrives in her garden. This stranger’s lifestyle…