Denese Harold English 102 June 16, 2014
In his story “The Chrysanthemum”, John Steinbeck uses the symbolism of the
chrysanthemums, clothing, and nature itself to point out that society had no place for intelligent
women in the early 1900’s. Elisa Allen is smart, attractive, and ambitious, but all these qualities
appear to go unnoticed by her husband, Henry (SparkNotes). Henry seems to be content to let
Elisa take care of the house and the flower garden, but he is in charge of everything else.
The chrysanthemums are a lot like Elisa. They are pretty and strong and thrive in a clean
neat flowerbed, just as Elisa is pretty and strong and has a clean, orderly house. Maybe the
chrysanthemums signify a source of inner strength and comfort that Elisa turns to because of her
circumstances. She doesn’t have the life she wants, but she can be a really great gardener. She
identifies herself with the flowers and when the tinker notices them, she gets excited as if she
