The Chrysanthemum: A Feminist Perspective Rebecca Pietron South University Online In John Steinbeck’s story The Chrysanthemum‚ the story is about a strong and intelligent woman who enjoys working in her garden. The main character in the story is Elisa Allen‚ who works in her garden everyday and she plants beautiful chrysanthemum’s every year. Elisa’s garden is protected by a wire fence that keeps cattle‚ dogs‚ and chickens away. (Steinbeck‚ 1938 Pg 376) Her husband is very pleased with her
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Professor Course Date: Chrysanthemums: Literary Criticism At the turn of the 20th century‚ women were considered inferior to men: they were only required to stay at home‚ take care of households and children. “The Chrysanthemums”‚ as told by John Steinbeck‚ is a story of a woman during that period who tries to change the course of her destiny. In this story‚ the two-fold issues of femininity and symbolism play a critical part in explaining this helplessness. Steinbeck uses the narrative to signify
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In John Steinbeck’s The Chrysanthemums‚ the reader is introduced to the seemingly timid and shy Elisa Allen. Elisa is routinely planting her yearly sets of Chrysanthemums‚ which appear to be the sole receptor of her caring and gentle touch‚ but all the while it is evident that "the chrysanthemum stems seemed too small and easy for her energy." Her hidden eagerness seems not only out of place‚ but out of touch with her dry and wilted surroundings‚ of which her husband‚ Henry‚ abruptly interrupts her
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David Van Nostrand Professor McRaniels English Comp II 13 September 2006 The Chrysanthemums Essay In his short story "The Chrysanthemums‚" John Steinbeck writes of a married couple and examines the psychology of the unhappiness in their marriage. It is a good depiction of marriage in the 1900’s which followed traditional roles‚ where the man is the chief breadwinner and the wife tends to household duties. The setting and the story’s protagonist‚ Elisa Allen‚ offer similar traits after his
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miniature versions of books or novels‚ where an author takes a tale and crams it into a ten to twenty page story. John Steinbeck is not only a well-known novelist‚ but also writes short stories like “The Chrysanthemums” and “Flight”. In Steinbeck’s “The Chrysthemums” Elisa Allen is married to a negligent ranch owner. While her husband works on the ranch‚ Elisa tends to her chrysanthemum garden daily. One day while tending to her garden‚ a charming tinker man pulls up to her in his wagon and tries to
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Myles Hypse March 2nd‚ 2017 English 1B 3:30-4:50pm Clothes & Chrysanthemums John Steinbeck’s “The Chrysanthemums” tells the evolution of a character over the course of a story. Steinbeck accomplishes this by using specific point of view to carry out his vision‚ very similar to the way Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni uses distinct character development in her short story “Clothes” to entice and pull the reader in. These elements work together in both stories to create a theme that has the greatest
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English 1302-319 Symbolisms in “The Chrysanthemums” John Steinbeck’s The Chrysanthemums is a story about a woman named Elisa Allen. She is a beautiful‚ smart‚ and strong woman who is unsatisfied with her present circumstances despite living a married life. The lack of intimacy and children in the marriage is the cause of frustration that she feels. Cultivating the chrysanthemums becomes an outlet for her frustration and disappointment. Steinbeck uses the chrysanthemums to symbolize Elisa’s femininity
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The femininity in The Chrysanthemums Men have been known to be superior to women. Women try hard to get passed this irrelevant stereotype. It is unfair to say that women cannot be independent and take control. There have been many critics that apply feminism to this story. “The Chrysanthemums” by John Steinbeck reveals Elisa Allen’s desire to have a more passionate marriage and secrets of expressing her gender. Elisa Allen realizes that she acts totally different around her husband. When
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Steinbeck’s "The Chrysanthemums" is a feminist text. Throughout the whole book there is a slight undertone about how Elisa is tired of her life and wants to leave her husband and the boring tedious life she leads there with him. While she is a somewhat strong woman‚ what with helping around on the farm‚ it still seems like she is eager to get away from it all and have an adventure. The story begins with discussing how good of a gardener Elisa is‚ and how proud she is of her garden. Gardening is usually
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be lonely. In the early 1900’s‚ farm families do not go into town every day. Therefore‚ they do not have much interaction with the public. Hence‚ Henry and Elisa Allen spend the majority of their time tending to the farm. In the John Steinbeck story‚ The Chrysanthemums‚ he tells of a lonely‚ hardworking farm wife‚ who is seeking attention‚ and wonders what life could be like outside of the valley‚ but decides to settle for the country life she currently lives. To begin‚ Henry and Elisa live in
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