Steinbeck was a successful novelist who previously worked as a manual laborer and brought up in a modest lifestyle. At Salinas Valley, California, he generally interacted with nature and appreciated the landscape, and this influenced his writing. This interaction impacted how he perceived the world, environment and human relations.  In ‘The Chrysanthemums,’ Steinbeck used the valleys the setting to draw the attention of the reader on the kind of life and character that lived in the land.  This writing enabled him to illustrate the perceived feeling of oppression and confinement through the use of vivid details about nature.

Suffice to say; the story begins by describing the weather. The high grey-flannel fog during the white winter closed off the Salinas Valley and excluded it from the skies above and the rest of the world.  The central theme of the story narrates the aspect of being closed off from so many opportunities and in essence living I isolation from other forms of life. This setting shows a clear description of the oppressive and claustrophobic nature that the Elisa the main character lived. Besides, the authors demonstrate the current obstacles surrounding the social and economic development of the female gender. There are numerous challenges associated with growing up and living in a male-dominated society.

Most of her time is spent gardening, but the voluntary contribution to the gardening activities is never appreciated because the society presumes a woman should be hard working. The gender roles set up by the community makes Elisa full of guilt that her gender has condemned her too feminine duties and every time she raises the issue with her husband Henry, she is ignored and disregarded. Henry lightly suggests that she should otherwise consider attending the apple orchard near the shop somewhat dismissively. However, Elisa takes the suggestion more positively and responds more affirmatively indicating she would appreciate doing so. From the response, it is indicative that Elisa was tired and dissatisfied in keeping the house clean and gardening the decorative flowers and she was yearning for the opportunities to expand her responsibilities.

The author reveals that females, in general, are often disregarded and ignored when Henry continues to speak about other issues giving little thought and consideration on the issue Elisa had raised. Therefore, the passion, skills, knowledge, and ability possessed by Elisa go unnoticed because the societal dichotomy sidelines the women. In another episode where Elisa opens up on how women’s bravery and compassionate yet it is never respected by the society. Elisa appears to enjoy the life of a tinker as she can travel far and wide as well as enjoying more freedom. The author reminds the reader how Elisa and the tinker met when she was dressed in male lobes to disguise herself.

The author seems to bring out an important issue about sexual fulfillment and the importance that it has in a woman’s life. In looking at this situation, Elisa’s true sexual need is awakened by the arrival of the Tinker. Despite, the fact that she does not have any idea about whom the person is she seemstoo obsessed with him that she cannot resist touching him. It is important not to confuse this to mean that the Tinker was attractive. The author, in this case, seemed to focus much on the idea of the sexual desires of the woman. The fact that she is ready to indulge with a total stranger paints the picture that her needs are not met at her home. Therefore, she will keep on having these desires until they are met. Since the probability of them being met by the husband are too little, the only left option is for her to look for someone else. Thus when partners fail to meet the needs of their partners, they often tend to bring other unintended issues. Besides the sexual frustration merely is among the various other problems that she faces in life and makes her look for more ways of realizing her persona.

It is incredible how the author can use symbolism in presenting his work. One of the symbolism that he uses here is the chrysanthemums. In many ways, the chrysanthemums seem to symbolize Elisa. First, they are only used as beautiful decorative flowers, and they do not have any other use apart from this ornamental aspect. It is the same dilemma that Elisa seems to find herself in. She is only there to be a beautiful ornament but serves no any other purpose. This makes her feel less worthy and hate her life. Besides, the flowers are only confined to the garden environment without any chances of escaping. The same predicament also seems to face Elisa. She is confined to her husband’s home and does not have any chance of getting anywhere else. The feeling makes her desire to do things that can make her have a sense of self-worth. However, her environment is not giving her any chances to experience any of these issues.

The author also shows how the man has minimal regard for the contribution that Elisa might bring to his life. Just in the same way the Tinker abandons the chrysanthemums on the side of the road are many easy to quit a woman for a source of income. Elisa is in a constant fight trying to engage him on the intellectual, spiritual and even physical level but he does not seem to notice these offering. His focus seems to be much on the money and not Elisa. Once he gets the money, he takes off without any thinking of the poor Elisa. It is evident that the women of these societies have a hard time getting attention. But the same case reflects much on the community of today where beautiful women are only reduced to “flower girls.” The primary role that they have to play in the lives of a man is to make them happy and not offering any other help. It is a sad situation for women that need to be changed.

Therefore, in The Chrysanthemums story, Steinbeck uses various literary devices like symbolism and crucial contrast to highlight the narrow gender restriction to imprison the female gender to narrow and empty lives. The author describes Elisa as a passionate, intelligent and exciting woman but the society, on the other hand, condemns her to a typical homemaker whose responsibility is cooking, cleaning, housekeeping and caring for the husband. The name Chrysanthemums is itself applied symbolically to indicate the limited scope in a woman’s life but the Salina’s Valley.

References

Steinbeck, John. The chrysanthemums.Penguin UK, 2014.

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